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ISSC-MAP
The International Standard for Sustainable Wild Collection of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (ISSC-MAP) defines criteria to ensure sustainability of the collection practice.
Additionally to the high standards which IMO sets for certification of organic wild collection, the ISSC-MAP standard requires a management plan for the collection area. This management plan enables the collection company to establish a monitoring system, which helps to detect changes in the collection area over time. Changes could be the diminishing of collected species through over-harvesting, shifts in population age, structure and dynamics, or as a positive outcome the recovery of a threatened species or population rejuvenation.
Apart from the sustainable harvest criteria, the ISSC-MAP also respects customary rights of local populations, and implements responsible business practices to support quality, financial and labour requirements of the market without sacrificing sustainability of the resource.
As compliance with ISSC-MAP reflects a higher level of control of habitat monitoring and the collected quantities, it normally reflects compliance also with the organic requirements. However, some deviations exist: if management activities change the character of the wild growing resource towards extensive farming, e.g. through enrichment planting, fertilisation and other methods to enhance growth of the collected plant, then the project can not apply for organic wild collection any more and should obtain an organic farm certificate.
Provided that the status of the wild collected goods remains “wild”, the products can also reach compliance and be labelled as organic wild collection according to marketing needs.
The ISSC-MAP is designed to help those involved in the harvest, management, trade, manufacture, and sale of wild-collected medicinal and aromatic plant (MAP) resources to understand and comply with the conditions under which sustainable collection of these resources can take place. It can be expected to become the most important standard for sustainably collected wild species in the future.
ISSC-MAP has been prepared by the Medicinal Plant Specialist Group (MPSG) of the Species Survival Commission (SSC), IUCN – The International Conservation Union, on behalf of a Steering Group consisting of the MPSG, Bundesamt für Naturschutz (BfN), WWF Germany, and TRAFFIC. IMO’s involvement as part of the international Advisory Group has allowed us to give major contributions and inputs to the development of the standard.
>> Download Version 1 of the ISSC-MAP standard: issc_map_standard_version1_0.pdf
>> Explore the ISSC-MAP homepage.
Additionally to the high standards which IMO sets for certification of organic wild collection, the ISSC-MAP standard requires a management plan for the collection area. This management plan enables the collection company to establish a monitoring system, which helps to detect changes in the collection area over time. Changes could be the diminishing of collected species through over-harvesting, shifts in population age, structure and dynamics, or as a positive outcome the recovery of a threatened species or population rejuvenation.
Apart from the sustainable harvest criteria, the ISSC-MAP also respects customary rights of local populations, and implements responsible business practices to support quality, financial and labour requirements of the market without sacrificing sustainability of the resource.
As compliance with ISSC-MAP reflects a higher level of control of habitat monitoring and the collected quantities, it normally reflects compliance also with the organic requirements. However, some deviations exist: if management activities change the character of the wild growing resource towards extensive farming, e.g. through enrichment planting, fertilisation and other methods to enhance growth of the collected plant, then the project can not apply for organic wild collection any more and should obtain an organic farm certificate.
Provided that the status of the wild collected goods remains “wild”, the products can also reach compliance and be labelled as organic wild collection according to marketing needs.
The ISSC-MAP is designed to help those involved in the harvest, management, trade, manufacture, and sale of wild-collected medicinal and aromatic plant (MAP) resources to understand and comply with the conditions under which sustainable collection of these resources can take place. It can be expected to become the most important standard for sustainably collected wild species in the future.
ISSC-MAP has been prepared by the Medicinal Plant Specialist Group (MPSG) of the Species Survival Commission (SSC), IUCN – The International Conservation Union, on behalf of a Steering Group consisting of the MPSG, Bundesamt für Naturschutz (BfN), WWF Germany, and TRAFFIC. IMO’s involvement as part of the international Advisory Group has allowed us to give major contributions and inputs to the development of the standard.
>> Download Version 1 of the ISSC-MAP standard: issc_map_standard_version1_0.pdf
>> Explore the ISSC-MAP homepage.
