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A sustainable programme to harvest Seabuckthorn and create products for local
and international markets to improve livelihoods and safeguard traditional
knowledge of medicinal plants and the biodiversity of Nepal.
Seabuckthorn is a highly nutritious and versatile
berry, containing Vitamins C, E, beta-carotene and
flavonoids along with omega-3 fatty acids.
An international foundation, local cooperatives and
traditional health workers are collaborating to safeguard
medicinal plants and biodiversity, by developing
a sustainable programme for Seabuckthorn
products for the local and international market.
Three Seabuckthorn nurseries were established in
2003, in cooperation with two community-based
cooperatives and a local Amchi family (practitioners
of traditional Tibetan medicine). The project aims to
establish additional nurseries and Seabuckthorn forests
in different communities of Upper and Southern
Mustang in Nepal. This approach to the cultivation
and sale of Seabuckthorn products will generate an
income source for the local population, and also
serve as a model that can be replicated in other areas
of Nepal, with other medicinal herbs that could be
cultivated.
As well as training locals in the extraction and preparation
of juice from the Seabuckthorn berries, this
partnership will develop a market in Nepal for all Seabuckthorn
products, with the local cooperatives
eventually establishing small and medium sized enterprises.
Ultimately, production by local cooperatives will develop
a national market in which the highly nutritious
berry juice can be sold to foreign trekkers and
the local population; the leaves can be used for tea;
and special traditional Tibetan remedies can be prepared
in combination with other local medicinal
herbs.
Seabuckthorn pulp and seed oil left over from the
juice preparation can be used for medicinal and
cosmetic purposes. In addition, international
companies have shown interest in buying other
products from the local cooperatives, and the
initiative will help broker fair business relationships
between such companies and local communities and
the enterprises they establish.
