Fruits, fungi and plants: the wealth of the Chilean forest that crosses borders

For decades, the Chilean forest has been associated almost exclusively with the production of timber and pulp. However, there is a universe of products that are born among native trees, plantations and forest ecosystems, whose economic and social value grows year after year.

These are Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs), an activity that today involves more than 200,000 people and opens new opportunities for rural communities.

Forest engineer and project director at the Forest Institute (Infor), Gerardo Valdebenito, who coordinates the Forest Diversification area, explains that this concept began to consolidate in Chile about 25 years ago, when Infor promoted the first research to identify the country's potential in this field.

Following the definition of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), non-timber forest products correspond to all those goods originating from forests, wooded areas and associated areas, other than timber. This category includes wild fruits, seeds, medicinal plants, fungi, barks, resins and other natural products with food, pharmaceutical, cosmetic and industrial applications.

"When we began studying this sector, we realized the enormous potential Chile had. Since then we have not stopped researching, and today we see a much more consolidated sector with great possibilities for growth," he says.

Currently, Infor maintains a registry that gathers information on around 600 non-timber forest products, a figure that continues to increase as new uses, markets and ventures emerge.

Global markets

The sector's growth is also reflected in its economic figures. According to Valdebenito, NTFP exports average more than US$80 million annually, while the domestic market represents approximately four times that amount.

Among the main exported products are Sphagnum magellanicum moss, quillay, rosehip, boldo and various species of wild fungi. To these are added fruits such as maqui, seeds, barks and medicinal plants that reach highly demanding markets.

The United States, Taiwan, Germany, France, Japan and, more recently, China, are among the main destinations for these exports.

However, the specialist warns that the real challenge is to stop exporting raw materials and move towards more processed products. "Today about 60% of the business is still based on the sale of commodities. The great challenge is to add value, develop industrial processes and capture a greater share of that wealth within the country," he states.

As a successful example, he mentions the case of quillay. For years Chile exported only its bark, but technological development made it possible to synthesize saponins locally, compounds used even in vaccines such as those developed during the Covid-19 pandemic.

That change made it possible to multiply the value of the product, establish new national industries and generate jobs associated with more technologically sophisticated processes.

Rural development

Another challenge that Infor is promoting is the domestication of native species, seeking to move from wild harvesting to planned production systems that can supply increasingly larger markets without affecting ecosystems.

Important progress has already been made with species such as boldo, quillay, Chilean hazelnut and murta, as well as research for the cultivation of wild fungi and the development of the pine nut tree.

Valdebenito also highlights the need to strengthen the organization of harvesters, promote cooperatives, formalize ventures and improve public policies to fully integrate these products into native forest management.

Forest fires represent another important threat to this sector. In addition to affecting plantations destined for timber, they destroy habitats where fungi, medicinal plants and other resources that constitute the livelihood of thousands of rural families grow. In many cases, the recovery of these ecosystems can take between six and seven years.

For this reason, various forestry companies and institutions have begun to develop accreditation and training programs for harvesters, who also play an active role in fire prevention and early detection, becoming allies for forest conservation.

From Acoforag we highlight that non-timber forest products represent one of the greatest opportunities to diversify the Chilean forestry sector, generate local employment and increase the economic value of the forest without compromising its conservation.