The floor of the northern forest grows a range of products free for the picking.
A Manitoba program is taking advantage of the wild berries, mushrooms, moss, driftwood and seneca root to create income for people who live in forest communities.
Dave Buck, manager of the non-timber forest products program, said it offers training and business assistance to help people, mainly aboriginals, harvest from the wild.
To date, 72 families in 22 communities have been trained. There are no age or education restrictions. He has had teenagers and grandparents in the sessions. Most of the people are on welfare and Buck said the goal is to get them working, using traditional cultural skills and knowledge to create income, and eventually businesses.
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But at the early stages it can be hard to motivate them to attend the sessions, where they learn what and how to pick. The program has received funding for five years from the Manitoba government.
“This is community economic development, not a business.”
He said program employees do a lot of hand holding.
“If a woman’s car breaks down and she can’t bring her packaged herbs to the market, then it’s my problem.”
The program is also helping to organize a spring meeting to create a Manitoba wild harvesters association.
