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Since Aphrodisiology wrote about Cordyceps about a year ago, there have been a number of curious stories coming out of China and Tibet. The demand (and high price) for this aphrodisiac fungus has led to an economic boom in parts of the Himalayas, with a gold-rush mentality and all the problems that go with it.
The executive synopsis: The wild cordyceps can be worth as much as gold, although typically it is worth only a thousand dollars a pound. Villages are waging gun battles with each other over who can harvest where. Large groups of Cordyceps hunters were trapped in a freak blizzard this spring, and an unknown number of people froze to death. China is using Cordyceps profits to fuel economic development (and Beijing's control over Tibet), while independence groups and thugs are using their fungal profits to buy weapons.
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In July, 2007, about 200 villagers got into a turf battle and a gun-fight broke out. Eight people died. (news.com.au story) The harvest of the fungus (known as Yartsa Gunbu or Yarshagumba locally) has become a hot political issue in Chinese controlled territories, and is intermeshed with ethnic strife and questions of religious freedom. (Phayul.com Story)
In May of 2007, over 100 harvesters were caught in the highlands of Nepal when a freak blizzard set in. At last count, 16 were dead and 54 were still missing. (Nepalbiznews Article).
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