Ophiocordyceps sinensis, commonly known as caterpillar fungus in the West, is an entomophagous (insect consuming) fungus with numerous medicinal and therapeutic properties, some anecdotal and some reliable (Devkota, 2009; Shrestha & Bawa, 2013). It is known as Yarsagumba and Yarchagunbu or Yartsa gunbu in Nepal and Tibet respectively, as Kira in the Dolpa region specifically, or by the unfortunate (and apparently inaccurate) nickname “Himalayan Viagra”. According to Kunwar, Mahat, Acharya, and Bussmann (2013), “The adenosine found in [O.] sinensis has widespread effects in circulation of blood, cerebral and coronary effects, prevention of cardiac arrhythmias, inhibition of neurotransmitter release[…] and antitumor activity.” This ‘caterpillar fungus’ is found primarily in the Tibetan Plateau and the high altitude regions of the Eastern Himalayas; this includes many districts of Nepal, though current studies of the fungus are largely confined to the Dolpa district of Western Nepal as it contributes about 40% of Nepal’s supply (Devkota, 2009; Shrestha & Bawa, 2014).
Although the harvesting of the fungus itself is relatively simple – for the most part consisting of spotting the organism and digging it up with a small hoe, knife or stick – the geographic remoteness and underdeveloped or non-existent infrastructure necessitates a considerable investment of time and labour (Shrestha, Shrestha, Ghimire, Nepali, & Shrestha, 2014). On average, harvesters walk 5-6 days and set up camp near the fungal habitat for the length of the harvesting season; about two months on average. Because of the economic importance of O. sinensis, entire families (excluding the very young and the very old) participate in the harvest, leaving villages virtually empty during the harvest (Shrestha et al., 2014).
Caterpillar fungus is primarily used as an ingredient in traditional Chinese medicine, and currently has an incredibly high market value: about three times the price of gold (Shrestha et al., 2014). Consequently, the high market value and geographic specificity has made caterpillar fungus tremendously important to the livelihoods of the poorest communities in the high altitude regions of Nepal – especially those in areas of limited agricultural productivity like the Dolpa district.
A biological commodity valued higher than gold[1] has serious issues with respect to sustainability, access and trade equity. Although the demand has increased drastically in recent years, the supply of caterpillar fungus has remained relatively static, with some evidence of decreasing yields[2] (Shrestha & Bawa, 2013). If the fungal population is decreasing, it is very likely the result of trade-induced over-harvesting as described by Shrestha and Bawa (2013). What is clear is that the number of harvesters has increased drastically, and the resulting income (per capita) has decreased drastically (Shrestha & Bawa, 2014). Although there is some protective infrastructure – i.e., a formalized start of harvest date, and protection from poachers – the harvest primarily takes place on open-access pastures, and thus limiting the harvest to locals is not feasible (Shrestha & Bawa, 2013). In terms of trade, the harvested fungi is generally sold to a local middleman, then a district level trader, a larger trader in Kathmandu, and finally is exported to mainland China, Hong Kong or Singapore (Strestha et al., 2014). Inevitably, the increase in market value benefits everyone except the local harvesters.
It is clear that the solution to these sustainability issues is not a ban on collection, because such a ban was in place in Nepal from 1993 to 2000 and served only to exclude many locals from harvesting, as the trade of caterpillar fungus continued illegally (Strestha & Bawa, 2014). It is equally clear that in similar situations around the world, an especially beneficial solution to the problem of sustainability with regards to non-timber forest products in impoverished regions is a community-based conservation enterprise (Elliot & Sumba, 2012).
The positive effects of conservation enterprises on poverty reduction and sustainability are widely documented (Elliot & Sumba, 2012). According to Elliot and Sumba (2012), a critical component of the conservation enterprise is the right private sector partner. In this context, this means the right local partner for harvesters, and the right partner for international trade.
As suggested by Sciban (2014), traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has emerged as a coherent body of medicinal care in Canada, supported by federal infrastructure and regulation; consequently the number of Canadians using alternative medicine concurrently with ‘Western medicine’ has increased significantly. As the rate of Canadians turning to TCM increases, the market for medicinal ingredients used in TCM also increases.
Since the limiting factor of per capita income from caterpillar fungus is the availability of product rather than the availability of labour, and because there is some evidence that the volume of caterpillar fungus available is significantly affected by human interference[3] it is likely that governmental regulation in the form of a community-based conservational enterprise would be beneficial to poverty reduction and sustainability, and that Canada is well positioned to assist in such an enterprise.
References
Devkota, S. (2009). The frequency and relationship of flowering plants on the distribution pattern of Ophiocordyceps sinensis (Yarchagunbu) in the highlands of Dolpa district, Nepal. Banko Janakari, 19 (1), 29-36.
Elliott, J., & Sumba, D. (2012). Conservation enterprise: What works, where and for whom? In D. Roe, J. Elliott, C. Sandbrook & M. Walpole (Eds.), Biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation; Exploring the evidence for a link (pp. 206-221). Chichester, West Sussex UK: Wiley-Blackwell.
Kunwar, R. M., Mahat, L., Acharya, R. P., & Bussmann, R.W. (2013). Medicinal plants, traditional medicine, markets and management in far-west Nepal. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 9, 24.
Sciban, L. (2014). The status of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Canada. Canadian Ethnic Studies Journal, 46 (1), 181.
Shrestha, U. B., & Bawa, K. S. (2013). Trade, harvest, and conservation of caterpillar fungus (Ophiocordyceps sinensis) in the Himalayas. Biological Conservation, 159, 514-520.
Shrestha, U.B., & Bawa, K. S. (2014). Economic contribution of Chinese caterpillar fungus to the livelihoods of mountain communities in Nepal. Biological Conservation, 177, 194-202.
Shrestha, U. B., Shrestha, S., Ghimire, S., Nepali, K., & Shrestha, B. B. (2014). Chasing Chinese caterpillar fungus (Ophiocordyceps sinensis) harvesters in the Himalayas: Harvesting practice and its conservation implications in western Nepal. Society & Natural Resources, 1-15.
[1] Although this assessment is somewhat disingenuous w/r/t the direct value of gold to the mining industy vs. the direct value of caterpillar fungus to the harvester.
[2] Limited evidence due to lack of information on the natural productivity and rate of replenishment of caterpillar fungus.
[3] Reduction of biodiversity due to excessive use of fuel wood, soil erosion w/r/t animal pastures, soil and water pollution, and premature harvesting of fungus inhibiting reproduction (Devkota, 2009; Shrestha & Bawa 2013).
Although the harvesting of the fungus itself is relatively simple – for the most part consisting of spotting the organism and digging it up with a small hoe, knife or stick – the geographic remoteness and underdeveloped or non-existent infrastructure necessitates a considerable investment of time and labour (Shrestha, Shrestha, Ghimire, Nepali, & Shrestha, 2014). On average, harvesters walk 5-6 days and set up camp near the fungal habitat for the length of the harvesting season; about two months on average. Because of the economic importance of O. sinensis, entire families (excluding the very young and the very old) participate in the harvest, leaving villages virtually empty during the harvest (Shrestha et al., 2014).
Caterpillar fungus is primarily used as an ingredient in traditional Chinese medicine, and currently has an incredibly high market value: about three times the price of gold (Shrestha et al., 2014). Consequently, the high market value and geographic specificity has made caterpillar fungus tremendously important to the livelihoods of the poorest communities in the high altitude regions of Nepal – especially those in areas of limited agricultural productivity like the Dolpa district.
A biological commodity valued higher than gold[1] has serious issues with respect to sustainability, access and trade equity. Although the demand has increased drastically in recent years, the supply of caterpillar fungus has remained relatively static, with some evidence of decreasing yields[2] (Shrestha & Bawa, 2013). If the fungal population is decreasing, it is very likely the result of trade-induced over-harvesting as described by Shrestha and Bawa (2013). What is clear is that the number of harvesters has increased drastically, and the resulting income (per capita) has decreased drastically (Shrestha & Bawa, 2014). Although there is some protective infrastructure – i.e., a formalized start of harvest date, and protection from poachers – the harvest primarily takes place on open-access pastures, and thus limiting the harvest to locals is not feasible (Shrestha & Bawa, 2013). In terms of trade, the harvested fungi is generally sold to a local middleman, then a district level trader, a larger trader in Kathmandu, and finally is exported to mainland China, Hong Kong or Singapore (Strestha et al., 2014). Inevitably, the increase in market value benefits everyone except the local harvesters.
It is clear that the solution to these sustainability issues is not a ban on collection, because such a ban was in place in Nepal from 1993 to 2000 and served only to exclude many locals from harvesting, as the trade of caterpillar fungus continued illegally (Strestha & Bawa, 2014). It is equally clear that in similar situations around the world, an especially beneficial solution to the problem of sustainability with regards to non-timber forest products in impoverished regions is a community-based conservation enterprise (Elliot & Sumba, 2012).
The positive effects of conservation enterprises on poverty reduction and sustainability are widely documented (Elliot & Sumba, 2012). According to Elliot and Sumba (2012), a critical component of the conservation enterprise is the right private sector partner. In this context, this means the right local partner for harvesters, and the right partner for international trade.
As suggested by Sciban (2014), traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has emerged as a coherent body of medicinal care in Canada, supported by federal infrastructure and regulation; consequently the number of Canadians using alternative medicine concurrently with ‘Western medicine’ has increased significantly. As the rate of Canadians turning to TCM increases, the market for medicinal ingredients used in TCM also increases.
Since the limiting factor of per capita income from caterpillar fungus is the availability of product rather than the availability of labour, and because there is some evidence that the volume of caterpillar fungus available is significantly affected by human interference[3] it is likely that governmental regulation in the form of a community-based conservational enterprise would be beneficial to poverty reduction and sustainability, and that Canada is well positioned to assist in such an enterprise.
References
Devkota, S. (2009). The frequency and relationship of flowering plants on the distribution pattern of Ophiocordyceps sinensis (Yarchagunbu) in the highlands of Dolpa district, Nepal. Banko Janakari, 19 (1), 29-36.
Elliott, J., & Sumba, D. (2012). Conservation enterprise: What works, where and for whom? In D. Roe, J. Elliott, C. Sandbrook & M. Walpole (Eds.), Biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation; Exploring the evidence for a link (pp. 206-221). Chichester, West Sussex UK: Wiley-Blackwell.
Kunwar, R. M., Mahat, L., Acharya, R. P., & Bussmann, R.W. (2013). Medicinal plants, traditional medicine, markets and management in far-west Nepal. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 9, 24.
Sciban, L. (2014). The status of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Canada. Canadian Ethnic Studies Journal, 46 (1), 181.
Shrestha, U. B., & Bawa, K. S. (2013). Trade, harvest, and conservation of caterpillar fungus (Ophiocordyceps sinensis) in the Himalayas. Biological Conservation, 159, 514-520.
Shrestha, U.B., & Bawa, K. S. (2014). Economic contribution of Chinese caterpillar fungus to the livelihoods of mountain communities in Nepal. Biological Conservation, 177, 194-202.
Shrestha, U. B., Shrestha, S., Ghimire, S., Nepali, K., & Shrestha, B. B. (2014). Chasing Chinese caterpillar fungus (Ophiocordyceps sinensis) harvesters in the Himalayas: Harvesting practice and its conservation implications in western Nepal. Society & Natural Resources, 1-15.
[1] Although this assessment is somewhat disingenuous w/r/t the direct value of gold to the mining industy vs. the direct value of caterpillar fungus to the harvester.
[2] Limited evidence due to lack of information on the natural productivity and rate of replenishment of caterpillar fungus.
[3] Reduction of biodiversity due to excessive use of fuel wood, soil erosion w/r/t animal pastures, soil and water pollution, and premature harvesting of fungus inhibiting reproduction (Devkota, 2009; Shrestha & Bawa 2013).