Demand and Supply Situation for Medicinal Plants

— From 2020 to 2015, it was predicted that the demand for medicinal plants in India will increase at an annual pace of between 17 and 23 percent to meet the needs of both domestic and international consumers. Small-scale farmers stand to gain financially and economically from a well-organized medicinal plant production and administration system. Ayurveda, Unani, and Siddha are the three main Indian medical traditions, and together they are expected to bring in more than $500 million annually. In 2015, the gap between demand and supply of MAPs was predicted to be between 50,000 and 250,000 tons. In 2020, this hole was predicted to grow from 250,000 to 500,000 metric tons. Modified accelerated production (MAP) industries provide labor opportunities in economically depressed states, raising the standard of living and tax base of the area.


INTRODUCTION
Ethnobotany is the scientific study of the traditional medicinal and spiritual uses of plants in various human societies.Indigenous peoples have been honing their own bodies of knowledge on land management, political organization, and environmental security since the birth of mankind.Recent studies have shown that around a quarter of today's medications come from the study of medicinal plants and their extraction.Seventy percent to ninety percent of the world's population, mostly in underdeveloped countries, uses herbal treatments to treat illness.However, in developing countries, attempts to expand access and introduce new technologies remain severely constrained.Furthermore, people in some impoverished countries are forced to seek for inexpensive and culturally traditional medicinal herbs due to the excessive pricing of pharmaceutical medications.Indigenous knowledge is the outcome of people's long-term engagement with their local ecosystems.Considering this, it is clear that ethnos botanical research is useful for documenting, analyzing, and disseminating information about the complex link between biodiversity and human civilization.It reveals the ways in which human actions affect and are affected by natural diversity.
Due to its direct and considerable involvement with this topic, ethnobotany plays a critical role in helping the development of correct information on the usage of both wild and cultivated plant species.Plants serve many functions around the globe, including but not limited to food, fodder, medicine in tablet form, textiles, housing, agricultural implements, hunting accessories, medications, poisons, gums, colors, fuel, fibers, currency, and religious practices.India's wide range of conservation, edaphic, and climatic circumstances help to explain the country's abundance of flora and fauna.When it comes to treating a broad variety of illnesses in both people and cattle, medicinal plants continue to play an important role despite the fact that they are in short supply and subject to environmental stresses.As reported by the WHO in 2011, traditional healers serve as a primary source of treatment for about 80% of the rural population in developing nations.There is a worrisome reliance on traditional medicine in nations experiencing expansion.At any one-time, multiple cultures have relied on around 25 percent of the world's senior plant taxa for medicinal purposes.The scientific database has the potential to not only avoid the loss of information on medicinal plants, but also to encourage the preservation and responsible use of this information.Numerous databases have been established all across the world.In this section, we take a look at a variety of database resources that might be useful in creating a database to preserve medicinal plants.

Nazari, Mansoureh & Kordrostami, Mojtaba (2023)
There has been a huge surge in interest in growing and utilizing medicinal plants recently.Medicinal plants have been an integral element of folk medicine for thousands of years around the globe.The loss of biodiversity and the degradation of ecosystems have been accelerated by human activity, especially the desire for plants used in medicine.Therefore, safeguarding threatened medicinal plants is an urgent need.Several methods were used to ensure the longterm survival of medicinal plants.One option that has shown promise for achieving this goal without significantly altering the fundamental properties of plants is biotechnology.The science of biotechnology offers a number of options for ensuring the continued existence of these plants.Tissue culture is considered by many to be a crucial technique.A full plant may be grown from a single leaf, bud, stem, or other piece that has undergone tissue culture.Plants can do this because, unlike mammalian cells, they can divide, specialize, and eventually create the complex organism that is a plant.Because of advancements in tissue culture, it is now possible to rapidly multiply identical plant populations.The conservation of important germplasm resources and native or endangered plant species may benefit from the use of plant tissue culture.In this chapter, we'll look at the many ways that tissue culture has been used to conserve medicinal plants for the future.

Shukla, Sandeep (2023)
Medicinal herbs have been used by humans as a primary method of treatment and prevention since prehistoric times.However, many species have been lost to extinction due to human activities such as the degradation of habitat and the use of non-sustainable harvesting practices for medicinal plants.This research paper delves into the challenges and possible rewards of medicinal plant preservation.In this post, we'll take a look at the threats these plants face, why it's so important to keep them around, and what can be done to ensure they stick around for the long haul.The immense variety of medicinal plants may be preserved, along with the invaluable benefits they bring to human health, provided the challenges and opportunities facing this sector are confronted and used.
Leaman, Danna (2020) North America is home to more than 2,000 unique plant species, many of which are used for fragrance or medicinal purposes.The Albuquerque Bio Park is working with the IUCN Medicinal Plant Specialist Group and NatureServe to assess the species' current conservation status and provide an update.Protecting species and ecosystems, engaging in sustainable wild harvesting, and producing plants where suitable are all goals of the IUCN Plants for People initiative.Assessing the current state of conservation is an important step toward this goal.

MEDICAL PLANT DEMAND AND SUPPLY POSITIONS
Much of the plant world consists of medicinal and aromatic plants, which are very important because they provide essential raw ingredients for the pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and healthcare industries.India's traditional medical system, which has developed over many centuries, makes use of a broad variety of plants with therapeutic properties.Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani, and other traditional practices are all included under this umbrella term.Over 9,000 native plant species have been catalogued for their therapeutic properties, and another 1,500 for their fragrant and delicious qualities.An estimated 80% of the population in developing countries uses traditional plant-based medicines to meet their healthcare requirements, according to research by the World Health Organization.Many modern medications get their active ingredients from plants, which makes them a feasible choice for treating a variety of conditions.Many people have easy access to them, they have few negative consequences, are very inexpensive, provide ecological benefits, contain around 40 percent of the world's biodiversity, and are home to some extremely rare species.Medicinal and aromatic plants make up a significant amount of the flora in these areas and are thus vital resources for the pharmaceutical, cosmetic, fragrance, taste, and associated industries.

Importance of the Medicinal Crops
India is known for its abundance of plant species with medicinal and aromatic properties.More than The economies of India and China are often regarded as the world's two most powerful trading powers.The total value of trade has increased significantly over the last decade, from $52.8 million to $68.7 million, a rate of growth of 3.56% each year.There is no way to know for sure whether we have even scratched the surface of the market for therapeutic plants.The present level of engagement in the program is still far below the real capacity of the countries involved.However, Least Developed Countries (LDCs) have some prospective openings to increase their exports of therapeutic crops.The worldwide market for herbal medicine was estimated to be worth more than US $68.7 billion in 2012 by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

World Trade in Medicinal Pants
In 2001, international trade was valued at US$1135m, but by 2012, it had dropped to US$1034.During time period, annual growth rates ranged from 5% to 15% across the board.It is anticipated that the market for this sector of the economy grew at an annualized pace of 25 percent between 2000 and 2007.
Industrialized countries like Europe and the United States have strict regulations on natural medicines.It's common knowledge that these nations have stringent requirements for the quality of goods that may be imported into their borders.This is a major barrier for emerging and LDC countries to enter these markets, especially for those whose products have not been subjected to extensive testing.The ever-increasing interest in medicinal plants all around the globe has created a constant market for them.However, at the same time, illegal trades in plant components have led to the careless collection of wild plant species, posing a serious threat to biodiversity.In Western countries, you may buy several pharmaceuticals without a doctor's prescription.The botanical components listed as basic ingredients are included in the aforementioned pharmaceutical medicines, albeit they are not always accessible in the same presentation as Ayurvedic therapies inside the Indian Medical Systems.They are often used off-label.Materials for the manufacture of these therapeutic compounds come, in large part, from developing countries in an unprocessed form.The total worth of the business created via this method is close to $800 million.

Table 7 Over counter Drugs Used in Western Countries
There has not yet been a thorough establishing of the current corpus of information about crops, agricultural methods, demand patterns, and market shares.The largest distributors in the medical plant trade often purchase many botanical species, sometimes from different suppliers that provide materials of various quality.The unreliable availability of raw materials contributes to the market's immaturity.There is a wide range in the cost of pharmaceuticals, and the amount of active ingredients in any particular product will vary according on the reliability of the supplier.Frequent rejections of export shipments are common, and the negative externalities associated with them are typically exaggerated.As a result of this phenomena, the net money obtained by collectors and farmers of medicinal crops is very variable.Zandu, Himalaya Drugs, Baidyanath, Dabur, Natural Remedies, Charak, Kottakal, Kerla Ayurvedic Pharmacy, Dhootpapeswar, and many more are only few of the major buyers in the home market.The rising demand for medicinal plants has resulted in an extraction rate from natural (wild) sources that now exceeds their regeneration rate.Unchecked and unregulated harvesting practices, which don't take into account the resource's long-term sustainability or preservation, may be to blame for the observed behavior.Because of this phenomenon, availability will always be limited.Aconitum heterophyllum, Aegle marmelos, Withania somnifera, Coscinium fenestratum, and Swertia chirayatha are only few of the therapeutic plants where this phenomenon has recently been seen.

III. CONCLUSION
Between 17 to 23 percent yearly rise in demand for medicinal plants in India, to serve both domestic and international markets, was predicted between 2020 and 2015.Small-scale farmers stand to gain financially and economically from a well-organized medicinal plant production and administration system.Ayurveda, Unani, and Siddha are the three main Indian medical traditions, and together they are expected to bring in more than $500 million annually.
In 2015, the gap between demand and supply of MAPs was predicted to be between 50,000 and 250,000 tons.In 2020, this hole was predicted to grow from 250,000 to 500,000 metric tons.Modified accelerated production (MAP) industries provide labor opportunities in economically depressed states, raising the standard of living and tax base of the area.
1,100 different plant species are used in the Indian system of medicine.Around sixty kinds of these plants are highly sought for and are frequently picked from forests.The derivative chemicals of medicinal and aromatic plants are well-known for their curative capabilities and absence of bad effects, which may explain the rising demand for these plants in both developing and developed countries.As a result, the market for therapeutic herbs has exploded.
Int. J. Forest Animal Fish.Res.www.aipublications.com/ijfafPage | 4 defining feature of this economic phenomena.The phenomena contribute positively to income equality.

Table 2
World Export Value of Medicinal Plants

Table 3 World
Exports volume of Medicinal PlantData on commercial activity is incomplete since most of it goes unreported.Either those in charge of compiling statistics are unable to recognize subtle differences between plants, or they fail to separate medicinal from recreational use.Documented exports of medicinal plants from LDCs peaked at US $37 million in 2018, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), before falling to US $27 million the following year.From 2005 through 2009, the average yearly amount was close to $31 million in the United States.The market for medicinal, aromatic, and exotic plants has not yet reached its full potential, but the business is still in its early phases in a number of promising nations.According to the data in the table, the total value of exported Ayurvedic and Unani International Journal of Forest, Animal and Fisheries Research (IJFAF) 7(5)-2023 pharmaceuticals is close to Rs.300 million.Ayurvedic pharmacies spend over 70% of their entire raw material budget on therapeutic plants.Since herbal medicines are becoming more popular in both the domestic and international markets, it stands to reason that there would be an equal and opposite growth in the demand for medicinal plants.Sunitha (2014) reports that the demand for Ayurvedic medicines in the Indian state of Kerala is expected to expand at a CAGR of 10% to 12% over the next several years.There are also signs that the use of complementary and alternative medicine is on the rise all around the globe.The Centre for Monitoring the Indian Economy (CMIE) estimates that India's exports of plant-based medicines and pharmaceutical commodities in 2016-2017 were worth roughly Rs.2,800 million.About $16 billion is traded yearly in the international trade of medicinal plants, which are obtained from forests as NTFPs.

Table 4
India's Exports of Medicinal Plants and Herbal Products

Table 6 Asian
Trade in Essential Drugs in 2019