Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (MAPs) continue to be an important source of income for rural communities in Albania. While wild harvesting of MAPs has traditionally brought the vast majority of incomes, the MAPs sector is moving increasingly towards organised cultivation in respond to changing dynamics such as depletion of wildly grown MAPs, climate change, lack of labour force due to emigration and increasing end market demands.
In the past people were using vegetative cuttings of MAPs from the wild or buying low quality imported seeds to cultivate MAPs in their lands resulting in very low quality and quantity of products. Some farmers are using propagules collected in the wild based on local populations, leading very often to overharvesting due to unsustainable practices.
CNVP Albania is addressing this issue through its Sida-funded LED project by providing famers with access to a broader range of productivity enhancing MAPs inputs, particularly seedlings with a particular focus on organic inputs. CNVP has partnered with several nurseries in the target regions to expand their production capacities for MAPs seedlings. One of the partnering nurseries is “Hysaj” nursery in Gramshi where support has been provided to construct a simple greenhouse to produce MAPs seedlings so that farmers from Gramshi have better access to high quality and the most market demanded MAPs seedlings.
On 24 January 2023, CNVP Albania facilitated the organization of a Field Day at the “Hysaj” nursery in Gramshi. Representatives of MAP companies, producers, Gramshi municipality and Agriculture Department attended the activity. The aim of organising a Field Day at the nursery is to share information on the MAPs seedlings that are produced locally in Gramshi, generate more demand for MAPs cultivation, raise awareness on good agriculture practices for MAPs cultivation as well as the market trends for MAPs. Farmers are showing an increased interest in the cultivation of MAPs and having planting material more accessible in their local area is highly appreciated. Adhering to good agriculture practices is also crucial for providing the required MAPs quality and generating more incomes for rural families.