Non-timber Forest Products: Beyond the Wood

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Wood Science and Forest Products".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 24 May 2024 | Viewed by 2883

Special Issue Editors

Department of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Science, University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, Italy
Interests: postharvest physiology of fruit and vegetables; postharvest technologies to preserve overall quality; functional and nutritional quality; native resources valorization; pomology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Department of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Science, University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, Italy
Interests: biodiversity; ecosystem functioning; carbon cycling; forest management; biomass estimation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Non-wood forest products (NWFPs) are a source of income and constitute non-negligible rural economies, especially in territories where wood resources are not fully utilised. The FAO (1999) defined NWFPs as “products of biological origin other than wood derived from forests, other wooded land and trees outside forests”. They include fruits (such as berries), nuts, hypogeous and epigeous fungi, medicinal and aromatic plants, fish and game, vegetables, saps, resins and essential oils, and a range of barks (such as cork), fibres, bamboo, and rattans, among a number of other multi-purpose trees. They are of increasing importance in the diversification of the forest-based bioeconomy across the world. The importance of NWFPs for rural communities depends on the type of resources available, how they are managed, and the knowledge that people have about management and marketing perspectives; however, their economic importance also depends on the governance of forest resources, such as the capacity of communities to organize management and marketing, as well as the distribution of the benefits and costs of resource management.

We encourage topics from all fields, including experimental studies, monitoring approaches, or assessment quality studies, to contribute to this Special Issue in order to provide information on different aspects related to innovation, sustainability, and planning forests to promote functionally diversified forests and landscapes.

We welcome research that includes local case studies, international comparisons, and transdisciplinary studies of relevance to sustainable forest management, the production of non-timber forest products, and their postharvest management.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Factors influencing the development and quality of forest products;
  • Local ecological knowledge and its dynamics concerning NWFPs;
  • Silviculture and forest management for the sustainable sourcing of NWFPs;
  • Marketing channels and consumer choice;
  • Advanced practices to enhance the quality and shelf life of products;
  • Circular economy in forest production;
  • New uses of forest products;
  • Testing procedures for the quality assurance of fruits and vegetables during postharvest storage as well as marketing;
  • Factors that can contribute to the loss of fruit and vegetable quality;
  • Value chain management and postharvest handling.

Dr. Giuseppe Sortino
Dr. Giovanna Sala
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • biodiversity conservation
  • avoiding ecosystem degradation
  • multipurpose plant
  • bioeconomy
  • non-timber products
  • unconventional species
  • food security

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 2992 KiB  
Article
Effects of Different Cutting Widths on Physical and Mechanical Properties of Moso Bamboo under Strip Cutting
by Liyang Liu, Xiao Zhou, Zhen Li, Xuan Zhang and Fengying Guan
Forests 2023, 14(10), 2068; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14102068 - 16 Oct 2023
Viewed by 783
Abstract
We aimed to explore the effect of strip cutting width on the physical and mechanical properties of Moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis). Four-year-old hairy bamboo with different cutting bandwidths (3 m, 5 m, 8 m, 12 m and 15 m) was used [...] Read more.
We aimed to explore the effect of strip cutting width on the physical and mechanical properties of Moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis). Four-year-old hairy bamboo with different cutting bandwidths (3 m, 5 m, 8 m, 12 m and 15 m) was used as the experimental material, and the traditional management forest (CK) was used as the control. Eight physical and mechanical properties—radial line shrinkage, chordal line shrinkage, volume shrinkage, total dry density, basic density, compressive strength, shear strength and flexural strength—were studied. ANOVA, bivariate correlation analysis, and principal component analysis were performed, which showed the effect of strip cutting on the physical and mechanical properties of bamboo. The results showed that the density, the total dry density, basic density, flexural strength and compressive strength of the strip cut bamboo were lower than those of the control stand. The radial line shrinkage and volume shrinkage were higher than those of the control stand. The chordal line shrinkage was higher than that of the control stand when the cutting bandwidth was 3 m and 5 m and lower than that of the control stand when the cutting bandwidth was 8 m, 12 m and 15 m. The shear strength was lower than that of the control stand when the harvesting bandwidth was 3 m, 5 m and 8 m and higher than that of the control stand when the harvesting bandwidth was 12 m and 15 m. There are different degrees of correlation between the eight physical and mechanical performance indicators. The comprehensive score of the physical and mechanical properties of bamboo in the control stand was 1.30, and the comprehensive score of bamboo in strip harvesting was between 0.37 and 1.25, with an average score of 0.95. The results show that strip cutting can save the time and costs associated with harvesting Moso bamboo forests, but different cutting widths can reduce the physical and mechanical properties of Moso bamboo in different degrees. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Non-timber Forest Products: Beyond the Wood)
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24 pages, 71380 KiB  
Article
Assessing the Sustainability of NTFP-Based Community Enterprises: A Viable Business Model for Indonesian Rural Forested Areas
by Jun Harbi, Yukun Cao, Noril Milantara and Ade Brian Mustafa
Forests 2023, 14(6), 1251; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14061251 - 15 Jun 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1642
Abstract
Indonesia’s vast forested areas have the potential to serve as a crucial source of livelihood for local communities. However, the current contributions of these forests to community livelihoods are significantly underutilized in comparison to their potential. This study evaluates the financial performance and [...] Read more.
Indonesia’s vast forested areas have the potential to serve as a crucial source of livelihood for local communities. However, the current contributions of these forests to community livelihoods are significantly underutilized in comparison to their potential. This study evaluates the financial performance and sustainability of community forest-based businesses operating around the forest management area of the Lakitan-Bukit Cogong forest management unit (LBC FMU). Data were collected through semi-structured and in-depth interviews with the key informants through purposive sampling. Financial viability analysis and a qualitative approach were used to assess the feasibility of the businesses. The findings revealed that all businesses show positive values for all financial indicators. From profit estimation and value-added distribution, all products are shown to be feasible. Concerning the value and supply chain, the rubber-processing industry has a remarkable flow. Moreover, small forest enterprises (SFEs) highlight natural capital optimization through multitudinous derivatives of products that could support a substantial regenerative economy, including citronella essential oil, native honeybees, rubber-based product, biochar, skewers, and liquid smoke. In addition, the multidimensional scaling and rapid appraisal for forest (MDS-RAPForest) approach generates a result based on multiple dimensions (ecology, economics, social and human resources, and institutional and administrative dimensions) showing that overall, SFEs are categorized as sufficient/quite sustainable. Furthermore, mainstreaming adaptable forest-based enterprises, jurisdiction approaches, and cross-production system strategies are also discussed. Our findings suggest that sustainable NTFP-based activities within a community context can be facilitated through interconnected market systems, appropriate price regulations, and support from stakeholders and legal frameworks. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Non-timber Forest Products: Beyond the Wood)
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