TIRANA, Feb. 16 – Albania’s exports of medicinal plants continued growing in 2015 with positive effects for thousands of households relying on this sector. Data published by the country’s state statistical institute, INSTAT, shows exports of “oil seeds, industrial and medicinal plants and straw” within which medicinal plants accounts for the overwhelming majority, rose to a record high of 14.453 tonnes, worth 4.1 billion lek (€29 million) compared to 12,894 tonnes worth 3.68 billion lek (€25.8 million) in 2014.
Farmers have been urged to cultivate indigenous medicinal plants instead of imported seeds.
In communist times, Albania earned about $50 million a year exporting medicinal herbs, and the sector employed roughly 100,000 people.
Experts say that if the plants were cultivated instead of being picked wild as they have been so far, the harvest could be increased as much as six fold.
One of the key challenges in Albania’s herbs and spice sector is the need for more storage facilities to protect their herbs and spices from contamination which lowers the quality and value of the plants when sold, says USAID which has been supporting the recovery of the sector.
A building donated by the U.S. military in Malà«si e Madhe this month will provide a clean, dry area to process and store collected plants.
About 70 percent of sage in the American market comes from Malà«si e Madhe district in northern Albania.
