Livelihood dependency of local people on non-wood forest products (NWFPs) in Fandoglu forest reserves in Ardebil province

Non-wood products as an important source of supplementary income for households and as a food source for them play an important role in people's livelihood and well-being. Therefore, the main purpose of this research is to estimate the harvest, consumption and share of these products in total household income as well as the type of non-wood products harvested in Fandoglu forest reserve of Ardebil. 102 households from 417 households in three villages were studied by random sampling. Harvest, consumption, income from various non-wood products, income from other sources, and share of income of NWFPs in total household income were estimated. The main harvested products from these forests were hazelnut, medlar, plum, rose, echium, pennyroyal, chamomile, wild mushroom, and ziziphora. Average share of these products in the total household income was 7.11%. The average economic rent per hectare per year and the land expected value NWFPs were 49.47 thousand Rials and 494.8 thousand Rials, respectively.