Selection of Collected Krachai-Dam (Kaempferia parviflora Wall.ex Baker) Rhizomes by Using the Preference of Krachai-Dam Products Distributors and Sellers

Abstract

The objectives of this research were to study the attitudes, purchasing behavior and the criteria the purchasing decisions of the distributors and sellers, and select the collected Krachai-Dam rhizomes which were the highest scores of the distributors’ preferences. To carry out this study, the data were collected by means of indepth-interviewing and sensory evaluation from 51 purposive sample Krachai-Dam product’s distributors and sellers in Loei, Phitsanulok, Phetchabun, Lamphun and Chiang Rai provinces during February to March, in 2003. All of the Krachai-Dam rhizomes which were used for distributor’s selection, were measured the internal skin colour by the colour reader in the system of a*L*b*. The data were analyzed with the SPSS for windows version 8.0. The finding indicated that the distributors purchased retail on kilogram without contract with Krachai-Dam growers before harvest. The most important criteria for price-setting and grading of Krachai-Dam rhizomes were the internal skin colour of the rhizomes. The majority of the distributors purchased only fresh Krachai-Dam rhizomes and sold both Krachai-Dam rhizomes and products. The distribution channels of Krachai-Dam rhizomes were wholesale from the shop and processing to Krachai-Dam products in order to direct sales to the tourists and whole sales to the retailers. The most popular products were Krachai-Dam herbs wine and Krachai-Dam honey wine. The Krachai-Dam rhizomes had high cost during April to September with the average price of the highest grade of 638.62 ± 211.41 bahts/kg and low cost in December with the average price of the highest grade only 92.45 ± 18.32 bahts/kg. The main problems and obstacle encountered were the capital for the Krachai-Dam business and the Krachai-Dam marketing and marketplace. The distributors and sellers stated that the knowledge of the exportation to the foreign marketing was more important needed for the training than Krachai-Dam processing and product’s price agreement in Krachai-Dam marketing respectively. However, the promptly trend for the government was to prove and confirm the actively pharmacological ingredients in Krachia-Dam rhizomes by scientists or pharmacologists. For the results of the provinces cultivar selection of 12 collected Krachai-Dam rhizomes form Loei, Phitsanulok and Phetchabun by using the preference of the distributors and sellers form 8 visual traits revealed that Rom-Klao was the most popular, while Ban-Klang 1 was more popular than Nhong-Saeng, Huay-Nam Sai, Kheg-Noi 1, Boh-Muang-Noi 1, Na-Ka and Nam-Juang respectively (grading in the level satisfactory). Using Hierachical cluster, the a*L*b* colour of internal skin were analysed. The Krachai-Dam cultivars were classified by dendrogram into two main groups (six subgroups) which had good relationship with the cultivar selection by the distributor’s preference. The Spearman’s rank correlation showed that only the preference of the internal skin colour and the internal skin surface of the rhizomes had high positive correlation with the overall preference of the distributors and sellers (r=0.85** and 0.70**). The selected Krachai-Dam cultivar of this research was Rom-Klao.