Ethnobotanical survey and commercial trends of underutilized herbal species in Colombian Andes

Bc. Zuzana Rázková

Master's thesis

Abstract:

As one of the world's biodiversity hotspots, the Colombian Andes are home to many different plant species, including those used in traditional medicine. These species provide health and security to local communities bearing traditional knowledge associated with their use for centuries. One of the places where plant diversity and cultural knowledge meet are local markets. However, little is known about the complexity of medicinal plants market chains. Therefore, this study focused on ethnobotanical and socio-economic research in five Colombian Andean cities. It aimed to (i) identify the most commercialised species and their geographical origin, (ii) explore the use and economics of three pre-selected local species, and (iii) examine the socio-economic background, marketing challenges and knowledge of medicinal plants among vendors. A total of 30 vendors were interviewed in the five study sites. Altogether, 55 medicinal species belonging to 30 botanical families were identified as the most commercialised ones. Of these, 71% were introduced, and five species were native to the Colombian Andes. Three preselected species Equisetum bogotense , Myrcianthes leucoxyla and Juglans neotropica were sold for 13 usage categories. The highest agreement, based on the Informant Consensus Factor (ICF), was found for food (ICF=1), endocrine system (ICF=0.98) and urinary system (ICF=0.97). The highest Use Value (UV=2.40) and Informant Agreement Ratio (IAR=0.90) obtained Equisetum bogotense. The Equisetum bogotense was the most profitable, with the most frequent daily margin of COP 2,000. However, Myrcianthes generated the highest profit per amount sold (COP 3,600). Majority of vendors (83%) were selling herbs as their primary occupation and 73% acquired knowledge from their family members. After the Covid-19 pandemic respondents reproted increased attention from customers (37%) and medicinal plants sales (59%). These findings should help the goverment and other stakeholders to support the market chain development of medicinal plants in Colombia through for example inclusion of youth collectors and traders and support of sustainable harvesting of local species.

Keywords

bio-cultural diversity, market chain, quantitative ethnobotany, vendors, traditional knowledge

Jazyk práce: English

Datum vytvoření / odevzdání či podání práce: 24. 4. 2023

Obhajoba závěrečné práce

• Obhajoba proběhla 30. 5. 2023
• Vedúci: Ing. Vladimír Verner, Ph.D.
• Oponent: Pavel Nový, Ph.D.

Czech University of Life Sciences Prague

Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences

Master programme:
Tropical Crop Management and Ecology