Kentucky’s American Ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) Management Program

Anna Lucio, Kentucky Department of Agriculture

The annual American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) (ginseng) harvest is rooted with deep cultural and economic value in communities not often touched with conventional agriculture programs. Authorized under Kentucky statute and regulation, the Kentucky Department of Agriculture administrates the ginseng program for Kentucky. The requirements for this program come from necessity in order to have legal trade access on the international market as a species listed on Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) which the United States has ratified as part of 50 CFR Part 23. The general assembly established Kentucky’s program in 1982 with the latest updates in 2010. This presentation will outline the management of the current Kentucky program in terms of the processes in place to ensure a future ginseng harvest.