Research Article | Published: 01 December 2003

Consumption of Medicinal Plants by the Drug Industry in Northern Kerala

N. Sasidharan and P. K. Muraleedharan

Journal of Non-Timber Forest Products | Volume: 10 | Issue: 3/4 | Page No. 145-154 | 2003
DOI: https://doi.org/10.54207/bsmps2000-2003-W9EJ54 | Cite this article

Abstract

The study carried out to assess the consumption of raw drugs by the drug industry in northern Kerala revealed that the annual consumption of 140 major raw drugs is 11,350 tonnes of which 83 per cent is consumed by large units, 6 per cent by medium units and 11 per cent by small units. Among the 140 raw drugs, 117 occur in Kerala. Forty-five per cent of the raw drugs are collected from the forests, 14 per cent from non-forest areas, 14 per cent from cultivation and 8 per cent through imports. Another 20 per cent occurs in the forests as well as non-forest areas. The study also revealed that occasionally unrelated species are substituted for some of the preferred species of the raw drugs.

Keywords

Access Options

250/-

Buy Full Access in HTML Format

Instant access to the full article.

Get access to the full version of this article. Buy Full Access in HTML Format

References

1. Chopra, R.N.; Nayar, S.L. and Chopra, I.C. (1956). Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants, CSIR, New Delhi.

Google Scholar

2. FRLHT (1996). Report on Conservation Assessment and Management Plan for Selected Species of Medicinal Plants of South India. FRLHT, Bangalore.

3. Government of Kerala (1976). Report on the Survey Team for Survey of Forest Plantations for Cultivation of Medicinal Plants in Kerala. Govt. Press, Trivandrum.

4. Muraleedharan, P.K.; Sasidharan, N. and Seethalakshmi, K.K. (1997). Biodiversity in Tropical Moist Forests: A Study of Sustainable Use of Non-Wood Forest Products in the Western Ghats, Kerala. KFRI Research Report No. 133, Kerala Forest Research Institute, Peechi.

Google Scholar

5. Nadkarni, A.K. (1954). Indian Materia Medica. Popular Book Depot, Bombay.

Google Scholar

6. Nambiar, V.P.K.; Sasidharan, N.; Renuka, C. and Balagopalan, M. (1985). Studies on the Medicinal Plants of Kerala Forests. KFRI Research Report No. 42, Kerala Forest Research Institute, Peechi.

Google Scholar

7. Pushpangadan, P. (1999). Medicinal Plants: Industrial Possibilities for India in 21st Century. Naturewatch, 1: 14-18.

Google Scholar

8. Pushpangadan, P.; Rajasekharan, S. and Sathish Kumar, C. (1998). A Preliminary Survey on the Commercial Exploitation of Medicinal Plants in the Drug Industry of Southern Kerala. TBGRI, Palode.

9. Ramanathan, D. (1993). Vana Oushada Sasyangalude Avasyakatha. Paper presented in the Seminar on Forest Medicinal Plants on 10/05/1993, Thrissur.

10. Sasidharan, N. and Muraleedharan, P.K. (2000). Survey on the Commercial Exploitation and Consumption of Medicinal Plants by the Drug Industry in Northern Kerala. KFRI Research Report No. 193.

Google Scholar

11. Sivarajan, V.V. and Balachandran, Indira (1994). Ayurvedic Drugs and Their Plant Sources. Oxford & IBH Publishing Co., New Delhi.

Google Scholar

12. Warrier, P.K.; Nambiar, V.P.K. and Ramankutty, C. (1994-96). Indian Medicinal Plants - a compendium of 500 species (Vols. i-v). Orient Longman Limited, Madras.

Google Scholar

About this article

How to cite

Sasidharan, N. and Muraleedharan, P.K., 2003. Consumption of Medicinal Plants by the Drug Industry in Northern Kerala. Journal of Non-Timber Forest Products, 10(3/4), pp.145-154. https://doi.org/10.54207/bsmps2000-2003-W9EJ54

Publication History

Manuscript Published on 01 December 2003

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content: