Mercado de fitoterápicos e fitocosméticos em Manaus (AM)

Abstract

This work deals with herbal and phytocosmetic market in Manaus (AM). The objectives are: to analyze the products of social-biodiversity of herbal and phytocosmetic market in Manaus, to identify the potential of the market and to analyze the headquarters of the production process based on nature. The study was conducted based on the relationship between society and nature, using the concepts of biodiversity, socio-biodiversity, technology, socio-spatial formation, territorial politics and geosystem. Primary data were used, obtained through interviews with farmers, employees of institutions with relevance in research and business, and secondary data, through literature and participation in events. The studied market is polarized by the city of Manaus, where there are the political and economic centers of the state. The market has begun to expand in Manaus in the last fifteen years as a result of territorial politics and ideologies (environmental and health). Products of socio-biodiversity identified as the most important for the industries of the market in Manaus are: andiroba, copaiba, cupuaçu, buriti and crajiru. Their processing stages are: 1) raw material in natura (medicinal plants or aesthetic value); 2) semi finished 01 (vegetable oil considered raw, with little added technology); 3) semi finished 02 (vegetable oil considered refined, inserted in industrial and technological processes for greater investment); and 4) final product (herbal and phyto-cosmetic). The raw material is produced by farmers through cultivation and collection of plants and it is a result of geosystem interactions, which is realized due to the ecological potential of plants generating a biological exploration by different social groups. Medicinal plants are traditionally used as part of the socio-spatial formation, but it also becomes necessary investments in research of bioprospecting and biotechnology.