Asian Geographic - April 2018

(singke) #1
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

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