Ginseng is a little ginger-like root that grows in the mountains of Appalachia. It has been used for thousands of years, mostly in China, as a remedy for everything from fatigue to cancer. It is poached from state forests, and it is farmed in secret locations. People have been killed over it.
But not all ginseng is created equal. There's cultivated ginseng and wild ginseng. And the wild stuff is where the money is. It can cost a thousand dollars a pound, or more.
There's a problem with this market: No one quite knows what wild is. Today on the show, we go to a hidden ginseng farm and try to find out.
Music: "Spinning Piano" and "Private Number". Find us: Twitter/ Facebook / Instagram.
Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, PocketCasts and NPR One.
Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.