On Thursday September 17, 2015, BDCP, NNMDA and FIIRO held a joint press conference as a pre-event to the upcoming HerbFEST 2015. HerbFEST Nigeria is the one and only event and exhibition of its kind in Africa, taking place at the Raw Materials Research Development Council (RMRDC), 17, Aguiyi Ironsi Street, Maitama, Abuja, Nigeria from 6th–8th October, 2015. The event aims at introducing traditional Nigerian Herbal Medicine and Natural Organic Products to the general public nationally and internationally and to arouse interest in the thriving natural and organic products market.
HerbFEST is an annual, regional, natural products expo with the mission to bring together a wide range of stakeholders actively involved in the use, research, promotion and development of herbal and natural products. Each expo is complemented by a workshop to enhance technical capacity in the industry, provide and elicit policy support, share experiences, promote ingenuity and stimulate investment/partnerships.
Now in its sixth edition, HerbFEST 2015 is set to attract varying investors and trade buyers from across the African region – as well as from the wider market of Middle East, Europe and US. Hosted by Bioresources Development and Conservation Programme (BDCP) in collaboration with Nigeria Natural Medicine Development Agency (NNMDA) and the Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi (FIIRO), HerbFEST is a not-to-be-missed trade and consumer show.
The focus of HerbFEST 2015 will be on Economic Exploitation of Medicinal Plants, Impact of African Medicinal Plants and Natural Products on Healthcare Delivery with special concentration on Traditional Birth Attendants (TBA), Traditional Bone Setters (TBS), Massage Therapists; Drug Development from Medicinal Plants with issues of Clinical Trials as Proof of Efficacy; Good Agricultural Practices from Farm to Markets from Cultivation to Packaging (Value Chains); Herbal Products in the Management of Metabolic Disorder (Diabetes, etc.); Products’ Profiles derived from African Medicinal Plants/Health Foods; and Panel Discussion on Natural products, Practice/Practitioners and Entrepreneurs;- Challenges in Integrating into National Healthcare Delivery System.
For three (3) days, HerbFEST will showcase vibrant herbs, health foods and natural products from across the region. In addition to the exhibition, there will be a packed programme of training workshops, meetings and seminars sandwiched with about thirty-two (32) abstracts of academic papers selected from numerous scientists in various higher institutions in Africa. This is an innovation over the previous event. The theme for this year’s Symposium is “Food as Medicine: Utilization and Sustainable Exploitation of African Medicinal Plants and Natural Products”. Attendance at this symposium is free as a way of our contribution to medicinal plants promotion and health and wellness promotion. A training on “Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) for Herbal Medicinal Products” will be conducted on day-3 to educate trainees on key knowledge from farm/cultivation to research/standardization to production/market.
Products group expected at the exhibition include Natural & Organic Food and Beverages; Herbs & Spices; Cosmetics & Personal Care Items; Healthcare; Herbal, Traditional & Alternative Medicines; Functional Food & Supplements.
A number of distinguished speakers have been invited to make presentations during plenary and training sessions of the event. HerbFEST 2015 offers business development, networking and learning opportunities for participants. The event starts 9:00am daily and participants interested in the training sessions will register with N10,000.00 only.