Ethiopian Cardamom Production in Yayu Coffee Forest Biosphere Reserve – An introductory manual

Ethiopian Cardamom Production in Yayu Coffee Forest Biosphere Reserve - An introductory manual

1. Introduction
Cultivating high-value non-timber forest product, such as different spices is becoming a widespread strategy for rural income generation. Spices are aromatic plants that are used mainly for imparting flavor, aroma, and pungency and for seasoning food. Among these spices group, cardamom is high-value non timber forest products. It is the world's third most expensive spice plant. The most significant component of cardamom, as a spice, is the volatile oil with its characteristic aroma, described generally as camphory, sweet, and aromatic spicy. The term cardamom refers to several plants of genera Elettaria, Amomum and Aframomum in the Zingiberaceae family. One of these genera Amomum recognized as large cardamom or black cardamom where the species are mainly found in Asia and Australia. The other genera Elettaria which is also known as true cardamom, green cardamom, or small cardamom consists of a small number of spices distributed in India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Indonesia. Another, Aframomum, which is also known as false cardamom, is distributed in Africa and Madagascar. The fruits of cardamom are used as a flavoring agent and drug in traditional medicine in most parts of the world. Compared with other Aframomum species, the seeds of korarima have less pungent, milder and sweeter flavor.

Ethiopian cardamom, false cardamom, or korarima collection and cultivation are important for the local economies in most parts of Ethiopia. Korarima is mainly grown in parts of its wild range in the rainforests of the country (particularly in the southwestern highlands of Ethiopia) and also grown in gardens outside of its range to meet the demand for the species. Korarima is one of the most highly priced spices in the Ethiopia which is considered as a potential substitute for the Indian cardamom. The economic returns obtained from korarima (yields per ha) were much higher than food cereals grown in the major korarima growing administrative zones. Yayu Coffee Forest Biosphere Reserve (YCFBR) which is found in the southwestern highlands of Ethiopia was registered in 2010 as one of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization’s sites for its significant role in the conservation of natural and cultural landscapes. An important feature of YCFBR is its richness in valuable types of non-timber forest products such as the production of high-quality, specialty coffee verities. Apart from Coffee, the socioeconomic role YCFBR area goes far beyond the market value of coffee or the use value of firewood. The NTFP’s among which the underutilized Korarima cultivation in YCFBR could play significant role in the socioeconomic wellbeing of the society, which can have a similar monetary value as agricultural crops. Review of indigenous production practices in Ethiopia showed a decreasing trend in production areas and yield in two decades as a result of shortage of permanent shade trees in the household farms and destruction of natural forests.

In YFCBR there is a tendency for men to utilize the forest more for cash and women for consumption; both poor and wealthy people rely heavily on the forest. If empower and engaged them in domestication, women could play key roles in the production and marketing of non-timber forest products in the country in general and YCFBR in particular. This manual provides a very brief description, collection and cultivation, pre- and post-harvest handling and processing, and challenges of Ethiopian cardamom production in YCFBR area. The manual will benefit local people, forest department field officials, conservation organizations, and commercial traders. Development of the manual has been based primarily on field survey results and similar studies carried out in YCFBR area and elsewhere in Ethiopia and abroad. Hence, the manual should be useful to those who want to promote cultivation and marketing of Ethiopian cardamom to improve rural livelihood in YCFBR and also to enhance on the role of women in cardamom production, accessibility to productive assets.