AFFC stands in solidarity with those affected by Hurricane Helene in Sept. 2024. Read more on the Post Disaster Resources page.

Appalachian Forest
Farmer Coalition

Wild Stewards Alliance
The Wild Stewards Alliance is a point-of-harvest initiative that offers free training on industry best practices, and certification to wild harvesters and dealers of woodland roots, barks, and herbs.
Our goals are to:
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Grow a trained and certified workforce of wild stewards to meet rising demand
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Create a sustainable supply chain of woodland botanicals for generations to come
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Ensure wild harvested botanicals meet top-quality standards
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Secure fair wages for certified producers to improve rural livelihoods
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Keep the deep-rooted traditions of wildcrafting alive in Appalachia
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From 2022-24, the Wild Stewards Alliance:
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trained and certified 108 wild harvesters and dealers in VA, TN and KY
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sold 856 pounds of woodland roots, barks, and herbs
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supplied certified botanicals to 9 buyers across the U.S. and Canada
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This initiative is currently being piloted by Virginia Tech and Appalachian Sustainable Development’s Appalachian Harvest Herb Hub in Central Appalachia.
Are you looking for forest roots, herbs, or barks that are high quality and sustainably harvested? The Wild Stewards Alliance is here to meet your needs! This network of certified producers is trained and inspected on industry best practices, to ensure top quality and to steward botanicals for future generations of harvesters.
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Benefits to You
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sustainable, ethical sourcing
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verified wild-stewarded supply
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high quality roots, barks and herbs
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access to a trained harvester network
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enhanced sourcing traceability
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reliable, one-stop shop for aggregated supply
How it Works
Advanced purchase orders for certified supply can be placed each winter with ASD’s Appalachian Harvest Herb Hub. Founded in 2017, ASD opened the very first Herb Hub in the country to provide the herbal industry with Appalachia’s highest quality botanicals, backed by top-notch customer service. To learn more about the order process, please visit ASD’s website below.
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Contact Our Sales Team:
Katie Commender, Appalachian Sustainable Development: kcommender@asdevelop.org
Wild Stewards Alliance: Producer Spotlight
Donnie and Carol, wild herb harvesters from east KY, attended the very first Wild Stewards Alliance training in 2022 to learn about safety, plant identification, sustainable harvesting, processing, storage, and more. They became the very first stewards to get certified. Carol, a 3rd generation wild harvester, praises the Wild Stewards Alliance for deepening her understanding of the importance of sustainability, saying it taught them "how to preserve, how to save." After the training, Carol is happy to now pass that knowledge on.
"It's not what you take, it's what you leave behind. Be good to nature, and
nature will be good to you."



Wild Stewards Alliance Program Trainings


