Direct Marketing of US Grown Chinese Medicinal Botanicals: Feasibility and Marketing Strategies

During the 1990s in the herbal products industry, a boom followed by a decline resulted in losses to some US farmers. In response, representatives of several medicinal herb growers associations began a discussion series to share information and find solutions to problems. Their analysis of the market led them to form and test a hypothesis regarding market acceptance of their products. Concentrating their efforts on an emerging market segment, licensed practitioners of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine in the US, growers conducted a feasibility and planning study in 2004–2005 and now are pursuing a marketing strategy based on the conclusions of the study.