In 1996, six women from the small communities of Tanado and Samurindo in the Chocó Region of Colombia partnered with an environmental NGO to add value to the harvesting and processing of aromatic and medicinal plants. Low prices and the time spent in collecting these plants made this traditional livelihood a relatively unproductive activity. With training and funding support, this women producers' initiative developed an organic certification process, and began sustainably harvesting, processing, and marketing a mixture of wild herbs under the brand name "Tana Organic Spices".

The network – named Red de Mujeres Productoras y Comercializadores de Plantas Medicinales y Aromaticas de Quibdó – has continued to grow in numbers and strength, and currently brings together 200 women Afro-Colombian women who cultivate herbs and medicinal plants in family gardens for sale to women's groups that specialize in value-added processing.

 

Key Facts 

Equator Prize Winner: 2004

Founded: 1996
Location: Tanado and Samurindo, Colombia

Beneficiaries: 200 women

Biodiversity: Tumbes-Chocó-Magdalena hotspot

 

Case Study

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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