Asian Geographic-April 2018

Pre 2004

Cordyceps is

harvested illegally in

Bhutan and smuggled

out via Tibet due to

high demand from

Chinese consumers

2004

A royal decree permits

cordyceps harvesting by

one person per family

of yak herders (whose

animals traditionally

graze in meadows where

the fungus is present)

2008

Every yak herder is

now allowed to harvest

and sell cordyceps at

regional auction points.

10% of the harvest is

kept at a regulated price

for regional doctors

2009

Due to over-exploitation

and illegal collecting,

a limit of three persons

per household is

imposed on cordyceps

harvesting

2017

The number of buyers

at cordyceps auctions

has doubled from a

decade ago. Rangers

patrol the mountains to

deter illegal harvesting

cordycePs collection

NATURE