Small Mushrooms for Big Business? Gaps in the Sustainable Management of Non-Timber Forest Products in Southwest China

Jun He, Min Dong and Macro Stark
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Jun He: College of Economics and Management, Yunnan Agricultural University, Kunming 650201, China
Min Dong: Centre for Education Reform and Development Studies, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming 650224, China
Macro Stark: World Agroforestry Centre, ICRAF East and Central Asia, Kunming 650204, China

Sustainability, 2014, vol. 6, issue 10, 1-15

Abstract: The challenge of managing forests for the production of commercial non-timber forest products (NTFPs) lies in promoting economic development by maintaining and even increasing production while simultaneously maintaining or improving ecological conditions. The discussion of forest management therefore encompasses a wide range of social, economic, political, and ecological questions. Empirically, it is clear that both market and government failure can lead to unsustainable management in commercial NTFP use. How can we manage the market and at the same time formulate good policies? Taking cases from Southwest China, this paper critically examines the current development of NTFP commercialization in the mountainous region of Southwest China. It focuses particularly on three pieces of research on mushroom collection and marketing. By examining empirical data, the paper analyzes current gaps in the policy and the market in mountainous areas in the context of promoting sustainable use of NTFP. It examines the market structure from the perspective of market failure and explores the government’s failure to promote commercial NTFPs. We recommend economic and political decentralization, capacity building, and government investment as means to improve sustainable management.

Keywords: commercial NTFPs; value chain; market structure; forest tenure; decentralization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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