Ailing ag economy could benefit from dose of medicinal herbs

ECHINACEA

By CHRISTIE APPELHANZ

The Capital-Journal

Maxine Rice can triple her profit per acre growing echinacea rather than soybeans, but that isn't why she started harvesting the native Kansas herb.

"I'm very interested in using medicinal herbs as a means of protecting health," Rice said. "I really got into growing and looking at them not so much as a crop, but as a means of education to myself and my family."

In 1992, Rice planted one-half of an acre of echinacea at her family farm just outside Horton on land that would have been used for soybeans, corn, milo or wheat. Echinacea, the medicinal name for Kansas snake root or coneflower, is an herb thought to be useful in shortening the duration of colds.

The plant is part of a growing phytomedicinal market with retail sales of nearly $4 billion in the United States and $200 billion in Europe. The industry has shifted from a small number of individuals on the fringe of mainstream America to major pharmaceutical companies such as Bayer, Smith-Kline Beecham and Warner Lamber.

"Medicinal herbs are not a get-rich-quick venture," said Dr. Rhonda Janke, a horticulture expert at Kansas State University. "The prices are high when the product is in demand and when you can supply a quality product. A person needs to be in this for the long haul to make it work."

Kansas climate and soils are well suited for producing all types of medicinal plants, including St. John's wort, ginkgo, elderberry, goldenseal, ginseng, valerian, milk thistle, feverfew, mullein, nettles and licorice. But some say the state isn't doing enough to tap into the growing medicinal herb market.

"As a state, we've been ignoring the rapid development of a profitable major industry for the Great Plains," said Rep. Gwen Welshimer, D-Wichita.

Last month, Welshimer asked the Special Committee on Agriculture to introduce a bill to allocate $200,000 to the Great Plains Comprehensive Agriculture and Medical Institute to study plant medicine.

Echinacea is conservatively estimated to yield 871 pounds of dry root per acre after a three-year production period. At a market price of $20 per pound, the gross return is $17,424 or $5,808 per year. But Rice said she wouldn't grow the herb if she didn't feel so strongly about its health benefits. From planting to weeding to harvesting, growing echinacea is a labor-intensive process done exclusively by hand.

Echinacea's popularity overseas has driven the U.S. market to the coasts. Kansas farmers must dry the herb in the sun or ship it fresh on ice. Rice typically dries her echinacea so she can hold it until the price is favorable.

"It is easier to make your money some other way," she said. "You literally can't do a lot of them unless that's all you do."

Herbs

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