Nutritional Properties of the Under-exploited Non-Wood Forest Products and Potential to Supplement Indian Diet: An Empirical Analysis

The collection of various non-wood forest products (NWFPs) is largely influenced by the interest of forest dwellers and the initiatives of forest department/state government. This study is based on the information collected from the stakeholders including forest dwellers, traders, processors, retailers and consumers. The whole value chain was selected for collection of primary data, and secondary data on EXIM and MSP were also collected for validation of the data. All the respondents belonged to the surroundings of Wild Life Corridor Area (WLCA) and other dense forest areas of the country. The analysis has shown that forest dwellers consume mahua flowers, tamarind and edible gums during collection of NWFPs. These products play a major role in providing nutritional security in tribal area directly through consumption and indirectly by generating supplementary income. The retailers, mainly dry fruit shops, deal with these products, while wholesalers supply the NWFPs in different cities of the country.