Year of publication 2013

In the last decade, the botanical medicine market has grown significantly, as has the range of products containing botanicals. No longer sold primarily as single ingredients, botanicals are now often found as mixtures, in sports drinks, functional foods, cosmetics, and as natural alternatives to animal ingredients like fish oils, or artificial colourings, flavourings and preservatives. The botanicals sector is diverse, with widely varying products, companies, markets, approaches to research and development (R&D), and regulatory frameworks. The focus of this brief is botanicals – plant-based (or fungi, bacteria, algae-based) products that are used as medicines or to promote health and well-being. For the purposes of this brief, we will use the term botanicals, but around the world these products go by a range of names, including herbal medicines, dietary herbal supplements, phytomedicines, phytoprotectants, and phytotherapeutic agents.