DATA SOURCES: BHUTAN DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURAL MARKETING AND
COOPERATIVES, DRAGON HERBS BHUTAN, SANGAY WANGCHUK, THE THIRD POLE,
RA ONLINE, KUENSEL ONLINEabove Cordyceps is
valued in Asia for its
medicinal properties
and is sometimes taken
as an aphrodisiacleft Inside a
traditional Layap
kitchenCordyceps is graded by a combination of
colour, size and weight. The thicker the
fungus, the higher the priceSprouting Demand
Average auction prices for cordyceps
(per kg) in Bhutan24,000
USD
YEAR
8,000
16,000
22,000
6,000
14,000
20,000
4,000
12,000
18,000
2,000
200720092011201320152017
10,000
USD42,204
The highest bid for
cordyceps (per kg) in
Bhutan in 2017VS USD155
A typical yak
herder’s yearly
incomeThe increase in cordyceps’ value
between 1997 and 2008900%
To reach cordyceps grounds, a Layap must
hike slippery paths, cross rivers and wend
through forest, eating and sleeping under tarp
between a rock and a tree branch amid torrid
weather. But with all that mountainous yak-
rearing, perhaps no people are better equipped
to gather this fungus, whose sales have since
made them the richest community in the
country. Chinese, American and Japanese
buyers clamour for the “Himalayan Viagra” to
make tonics, while it is to locals a medicine
and household remedy.
But not all Layap have been swept up in
the cordyceps craze. Some, like Wangmo, still
herd: Each yak in her flock of 49 has a name,
and her son sells their butter and cheese at
Punakha, the closest big city.
“I’m absolutely uninterested in that
expensive caterpillar,” says the middle-aged
Layap, who is wearing a flowery blouse
and black skirt made from yak wool. “I like
constantly moving from one pasture to
another. I can’t imagine life without my yaks.”
Perhaps Wangmo is onto something.
Experts – and the Bhutan government – have
observed that the quantity and quality
of cordyceps in the Himalayas has been
decreasing with each passing year. Global
warming threatens the longevity of this
fungus, throwing into question how long the
Layap’s new tradition can stick around for. ag