Domestication And Commercialization Of Non Timber Forest Products In Agroforestry Systems

Proceedings of the International Conference on Domestication & Commercialization of Non-timber Forest Products in Agroforestry Systems, Nairobi, Kenya, 19-23 February 1996, hosted by ICRAF (International Centre for Research in Agroforestry) & others

V. 1: Asia. Editors: Koen Kusters and Brian Belcher; V. 2: Africa. Editors: Terry Sunderland and Ousseynou Ndoye.

The value of growing trees on tropical farms for subsistence, commercial sale and environmental stability has been increasingly recognized in recent decades. However, there has been little research on the market potential for nontimber tree products (NTTPs). This publication aims to provide a background on markets and methodological issues in market assessment and how they affect agroforestry and forestry projects, with reference to recent research carried out by NRI in Cameroon on NTTPs. The specific characteristics of NTTPs which make the assessment of their market potential difficult are outlined, strategic options for their development are discussed and conclusions are drawn which stress the importance of informal methods.