How "Kyrgyzstan's Gold" Can Revive Villages and Save the Land: The Story of the Revival of Ferula
August 5, 2025
Avazkan Chotbaev is 70 years old; he was born and raised in the Batken region. Here, among the dry slopes and pastures, people have used ferula, a wild plant with a strong odor, for over 200 years. It helps with colds, digestive issues, and cardiovascular diseases, and today it is highly valued in pharmaceuticals and perfumery. Three types of ferula grow in Batken: white, yellow, and stinking.
However, in recent decades, chayyr (ferula) has been under threat of extinction. Since 2017, over 1,500 residents of the village of Kara-Bulak have been uprooting the plant en masse to collect its resin, leaving no chance for the population to recover. Without roots, ferula stops producing seeds and dies.
"Since childhood, I’ve seen people collecting ferula. Its resin was used as a natural remedy. But starting in 2017, I noticed a troubling trend—people began uprooting it en masse. It was an alarming signal. I worked in ecology, and that’s when I started sounding the alarm,"Avazkan recalls.
Ferula
He reached out to local authorities and forestry departments, trying to get through to people. Eventually, he succeeded in getting a ban on uprooting ferula. But a ban alone was only half the solution. An alternative had to be offered.
And he found that alternative. Avazkan proposed cultivating ferula as an agricultural crop. The idea seemed almost impossible: no one in the region had ever cultivated it before. He began experimenting himself. He planted ferula in different conditions: in the mountains, near riverbanks, and on poor soils. He tried various planting methods. Every year, he planted new plots and carefully monitored the plants' growth. What he planted in 2018–2019 yielded its first full harvest only this year. Ferula requires patience. It doesn’t yield quick results, but its value only grows over time. To achieve stable results, it must be planted every year. And he continues to do so.
In 2023, his public foundation "Protect Children and Mothers" received a grant from the GEF UNDP Small Grants Programme. This became a turning point. With the project's support, 17 farming families in Kara-Bulak received seeds to grow chayyr on their plots. A protected mother plot of 50 hectares was established—a kind of "seed bank" for future generations.
Avazkan conducted training sessions, shared international experiences with farmers, and showed them how chayyr is cultivated in Uzbekistan, Iran, and other countries. People began to believe. Farmers learned that the plant can grow on non-irrigated lands where other crops perish, that after 4–5 years a single plant can yield up to a kilogram of resin, which is several times more valuable than wool or grain. They realized that ferula not only restores pastures and strengthens the soil but also provides real income.
Ferula seeds
The Kara-Bulak experience became a successful example of a sustainable approach, and in 2024, the Cabinet of Ministers of the Kyrgyz Republic approved a national Programme for the Cultivation of Ferula in Kyrgyzstan for 2024–2028. The document clearly outlines the goals: to preserve the endangered species, turn galbanum—ferula resin—into an export commodity, use the plant to restore degraded lands, and attract investments to remote rural regions. The programme covers not only cultivation and farmer support but also measures to amend legislation, conduct scientific research, introduce raw material processing technologies, and promote the product in international markets, including China, India, and the European Union.
In 2025, under Avazkan’s leadership, about 1,000 hectares of ferula were planted, and in 2026, the plan is to expand to 2,000–3,000 hectares. This work is not only transforming Batken’s landscape but also creating a new type of agriculture where profit is not the sole priority—care for the land is equally important.
The programme to revive ferula in Kyrgyzstan aims to save this unique plant from extinction by creating sustainable plantations. It seeks to turn ferula resin into an export commodity that generates income for local farmers, revive degraded lands by leveraging the plant’s hardiness, and attract investments to the industry.
To achieve these goals, measures are planned across four key areas. In terms of regulatory changes, amendments will be made to laws on plant conservation and agricultural development, and guidelines for cultivating and harvesting ferula will be approved. For cultivation, 11,600 hectares of low-productivity and degraded lands will be allocated for ferula between 2024 and 2028, drip irrigation will be introduced on 250 hectares, and a "Ferula" cluster will be created to unite producers. State support includes training in modern cultivation methods, providing preferential loans, attracting international investments, researching foreign markets, and promoting exports.
Interesting fact: In ancient times, ferula resin was used as a natural antiseptic, and today it is being studied in leading pharmaceutical laboratories worldwide as a promising treatment for cancer and Alzheimer’s disease.
This project demonstrates how careful stewardship of natural resources can become a driver for economic development and ecological revival.