Wausau, WI, US, North Central --
The ginseng market for Marathon County growers could become more profitable in the coming years.
Representatives of the Shenshen Wanji Pharmaceutical Co., one of China's largest ginseng companies, was in Wausau this week studying Marathon County's ginseng industry, said Robert Romang, president of the Wisconsin Ginseng Board and an Athens ginseng grower.
The company is looking at area ginseng growers to be exclusive suppliers of the root.
Ginseng is used as an all-purpose health supplement and cure-all in China, and Wisconsin- grown ginseng is thought to be some of the best, Romang said. Company representatives said they could increase the prestige of their products if they use only Wisconsin-grown root, he said.
It could be a beneficial relationship for growers in Marathon County, where more than 90 percent of U.S. ginseng is grown, said Marathon grower Jerry Petrowski, a Ginseng Board member.
The ginseng crop has played a large part in the county's economy, and some years' harvest has sold for up to $100 million dollars.
Demand is currently down, and the entrance of a large buyer in the Wausau area would help, Petrowski said.
"With the sales figures I've heard, they could buy a very large amount," he said. "I would certainly think it would help, because things can't get much worse than they are now."
Prices for the root have been in a big slump for the past two years. Ginseng now generally fetches less than $15 a pound, compared to more than $50 at some points in the past. Theories about the cause of the slump abound, but some growers have suggested that Chinese buyers who sell wholesale ginseng to Chinese companies are partly to blame. Also exacerbating the problem is oversupply, caused by increasing production both in the United States and Canada.
Because of these difficulties, a relationship between Shenshen Wanji Pharmaceuticals and Marathon County growers could be quite beneficial, Romang said. TThe company uses a lot of ginseng , and if it's successful, could attract more companies to the Wausau area to buy direct from growers.
"They do approximately $30 million a year in wholesale revenues for ginseng products, and have a pretty impressive product line," he said. "They claim to be the largest ginseng distributor in China, although everyone claims that."
If it happens, however, area growers will need to adapt, Romang said. Currently, Chinese buyers purchase ginseng from individual growers and ship it to China and other parts of Asia before selling it to distributors.
If the middleman is eliminated, growers probably will have to give up the idea of selling from the farm gate if they want to be successful, he said.
"Large Chinese companies have no concept of dealing with individuals growers," Romang said. "If a group of growers could pool together, guarantee their product and market under one roof, it would have a substantial positive effect."
BY : Chris Carroll
SOURCE :Wausau Daily Herald
1998. 06.
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