Training on the ‘Strategy for Marketing of Pine Needles’ for communities of Pathrevi, Himachal Pradesh

06 Dec, 2020

Pine needle handicraft was introduced by the Himachal Pradesh Forest Ecosystem Services (HP-FES) Project at the Pathrevi demonstration site, situated in District Mandi of Himachal Pradesh. The craft has the potential to provide additional income to women along with conserving the environment, by reducing forest fires and soil degradation.

Following the capacity development programme on making pine needle artefacts organised for the women group, a marketing strategy was developed which laid emphasis on providing design inputs to artisans through resource agencies, registering the artisans into self-help groups (SHGs), undertaking zero cost online promotion, selling products via online leads and offline stores and participation in fairs and exhibitions.

A short, virtual training was organised on 6th December 2020 for 8 community members, comprising of 7 women participants. The intent of the course was to give them an overview of the marketing strategy, mapping value addition for pine needle products and providing them inputs on the potential places where the products can be sold. Inputs on various design alternatives to diversify the product range were also provided during the course. A detailed list of master trainers and agencies was brought forth to the community members for intensifying their network with other clusters where such products are being processed.

The training was concluded with experience sharing and positive feedback from the participants on the marketing strategy and taking forth pine needle handicraft as a resource for earning cash-income and providing better livelihood opportunities.

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About the project

The Himachal Pradesh Forest Ecosystem Services project aims to enable the Forest Department of Himachal Pradesh to introduce the Forest Ecosystem Services approach in the state’s forest management system to improve living conditions of the communities residing in 9 project demonstration sites of the state that are reached by the new FES methods. Read more

For more information contact: biodiv.india@giz.de