🎯 The business: buying dried, cultivated American ginseng from registered growers in Wisconsin, where most U.S. cultivated ginseng is grown, then sorting, grading and packing it for importers in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia. American ginseng is protected under CITES, the treaty on trade in endangered species, so every export needs federal permits. That paperwork keeps casual sellers out and is where a careful dealer earns trust.
At a glance
| Money to start | ≈ $14,000 to $16,000, most of it for your first lot of roots |
| Time to the first shipment | About 6 to 10 months, timed to the fall harvest |
| Hours a week | 5 to 10 most of the year; 30 or more in the harvest and selling season |
| Skills that matter most | Judging root quality, patience with permits, relationships with growers and Chinese-speaking buyers |
| A realistic income line | Six 500-pound shipments a year at about $4,000 margin each is $24,000 a year before overhead |
Is this for you?
It suits someone with a foot in both worlds: a person from central Wisconsin who knows the growers, or someone who speaks Cantonese or Mandarin and knows how the herbal trade works in Hong Kong or Taiwan. You need an eye for roots. Size, shape, color, ring marks and firmness all change the price.
It is a poor fit if you need steady monthly income or dislike forms. Sales bunch up after the fall harvest, and every shipment carries a CITES permit, a state certificate and a USDA inspection. Trade fights with China have also made this market less predictable in recent years.
Who pays, and what
Herbal wholesalers and importers in Hong Kong (many in its traditional herbal trading district in Sheung Wan), Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia, plus some buyers in mainland China. They buy whole dried roots by the pound or kilo, priced by grade: large, medium and small roots, then broken pieces and fine roots that sell for much less. Some also want sliced roots or retail gift boxes with a Wisconsin origin story.
Wisconsin-grown roots carry a premium over ginseng grown in China or Canada, and buyers worry about lookalikes sold as Wisconsin ginseng. Proof of origin is part of what you sell.
What it takes to start
| LLC, EIN, bank account, Wisconsin dealer registration | $600 |
| A buyer trip to Hong Kong and Taiwan | $3,000 to $5,000 |
| Samples, grading supplies, gift packaging design | $1,000 |
| A first lot of roots, about 200 pounds at an example $40 a pound | $8,000 |
| Business and cargo insurance, first year | $1,000 |
| Pesticide residue lab tests | $400 |
| All-in | ≈ $14,000 to $16,000 |
Federal permits are not on the list because their fees are small next to the roots; check the current fees on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and USDA application forms.
Start to finish: the steps
1. Learn the grades. Spend time with a grower or an established dealer during harvest and learn how roots are sorted by size, shape and quality. Buyers price by grade, and a mixed bag sells at the lowest grade in it.
2. Register as a dealer in Wisconsin. The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) requires anyone who buys ginseng from growers to register as a dealer every year, in state or out of state. Ginseng shipped out of Wisconsin must travel with a state shipment certificate showing the harvest year.
3. Get the federal permits. Apply to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for a CITES export permit for American ginseng; for many shipments of cultivated roots, one application sets up a file you can draw on for several years. Apply to USDA APHIS for the Protected Plant Permit that businesses exporting CITES plants must hold. Allow a few months.
4. Meet buyers before you buy roots. Visit importers in Hong Kong and Taiwan with graded samples and photos. Ask what grades, forms and lab results each one wants, and what it paid last season.
5. Contract with growers. Agree in summer with two or three registered growers to buy part of their fall crop, by grade, at a price tied to what your buyers will pay. Get the state shipment certificates with every lot.
6. Sort, test and pack. Grade the dried roots, send a sample from each lot for a pesticide residue test, and pack by grade in sealed, labeled cartons. Photograph each carton before it is closed.
7. Ship through a designated port. CITES plant exports must leave through a port designated for them and be shown to a USDA inspector, with the CITES permit and state certificate. Most ginseng goes by air.
8. Get paid before the roots are released. Payment in advance, or a letter of credit, until a buyer has a track record with you.
9. Ask how it sold. A buyer who resold your large roots quickly will want more next season. Write down what each buyer liked and what it complained about.
10. Then grow: more growers, a buyer in each of three or four markets so one trade fight does not stop you, and your own sliced or boxed retail product.
Pricing an order
| 500 pounds of mixed-grade dried roots at an example $40 a pound | $20,000 |
| Sorting labor, cartons, labels, residue tests | $1,000 |
| Air freight to Hong Kong and cargo insurance | $1,500 |
| Inspection, export filing, broker fees | $500 |
| Your cost delivered | $23,000 |
| Sold at an average $54 a pound across the grades | $27,000 |
| Your margin | $4,000 (about 15 percent) |
All prices are examples to show the method. Ginseng prices change every season with the crop and with trade policy, and the gap between grades is large, so price each grade separately when you quote. More in Export pricing.
The math
At the example numbers, one 500-pound shipment costs you $23,000 and sells for $27,000, so you keep $4,000. Six shipments in a season is $24,000. Take off about $3,000 a year for the buyer trip, renewals, phone and insurance, and about $21,000 is left before tax. This is a seasonal side business for most dealers, not a full-time salary.
Watch the cash. You pay growers in the fall and are paid when each shipment lands, so the money for several shipments can be tied up at once. A roots price that falls between buying and selling can wipe out a season: at 500 pounds, a drop of $8 a pound is the whole $4,000 margin.
Getting buyers to say yes
Buyers say yes to honest grading, clear proof that the roots are Wisconsin grown (state certificates, grower names, photos), clean residue tests and complete permits, because a shipment held at the border hurts them as much as you. Speaking the buyer’s language, or working with someone who does, makes a large difference.
Where to find them: Hong Kong’s herbal wholesale trade, trade shows for herbal and health products in Hong Kong and Taiwan, the U.S. Commercial Service in Hong Kong, Taipei and Singapore, and the Ginseng Board of Wisconsin, which promotes Wisconsin ginseng abroad. More in Finding foreign buyers.
Running it week to week
In the off season: renew registrations and permits, keep in touch with buyers and growers, and track prices. In harvest and selling season: inspect lots at the growers, sort and pack, book inspections and air freight, and keep a file for every shipment with the state certificates, CITES permit, inspection record, residue test, invoice and payment.
Rules to check
This is a licensed trade. Check each of these before you buy a root:
Wisconsin: annual dealer registration with DATCP, and a state shipment certificate for cultivated ginseng sold to a dealer or shipped out of the state. Growers must be registered too; buy only from those who are.
Federal: a CITES export permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and a USDA APHIS Protected Plant Permit for businesses that export CITES plants. Exports leave through a designated port and are shown to a USDA inspector. Wild-dug ginseng has stricter rules (including minimum root age and harvest seasons); this page covers cultivated roots only.
Destination: China raised its tariffs on U.S. goods, including ginseng, several times in 2025 before a truce eased them. Check the current rate before you sell to the mainland. Moving U.S. roots through Hong Kong does not change their U.S. origin, and you must not misdeclare it. Hong Kong, Taiwan and other markets test herbal products for pesticide residues; your importer handles its own licenses, so ask what it needs from you. More on screening and filing in Export controls.
What goes wrong
Tariff changes that close the mainland market overnight, as happened in 2018 and again in 2025. A residue test that fails at the destination. A shipment that leaves without the right permit and is seized. Grades that the buyer re-sorts lower on arrival. Roots that are not Wisconsin grown sold to you as Wisconsin ginseng. The dealers who last buy only from registered growers they know, test every lot, sell to several markets, and keep perfect paperwork.
Questions people ask
Do I need a permit to export ginseng?
Yes. American ginseng is listed under CITES, so exports need a CITES export permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and a state certificate showing where the roots were grown. Businesses also need a USDA Protected Plant Permit, and shipments leave through designated ports with a USDA inspection.
Do I need a license to buy ginseng in Wisconsin?
Yes. Wisconsin requires ginseng dealers to register with DATCP every year, including dealers based out of state, and growers must register as well. Cultivated ginseng shipped out of Wisconsin needs a state shipment certificate.
How much is Wisconsin ginseng worth per pound?
It varies a great deal by grade, season and trade policy. Large, well-shaped roots sell for many times the price of fine roots and pieces. Ask several dealers and growers what they paid and received last season; this page uses $40 a pound only as an example.
Why is American ginseng so popular in Asia?
American ginseng has a long history in Chinese herbal tradition, where it is valued differently from Asian ginseng, and Wisconsin roots have a reputation for quality that buyers pay extra for.
How much can a ginseng dealer make?
At this page’s example numbers, about $4,000 per 500-pound shipment, or about $21,000 a year after overhead on six shipments. Most small dealers run it as a seasonal business beside other work.
Free help
DATCP explains the Wisconsin grower and dealer rules. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s international affairs office answers questions on CITES ginseng permits, and USDA APHIS on the Protected Plant Permit and designated ports. The Ginseng Board of Wisconsin works on promotion abroad. The U.S. Commercial Service in Hong Kong, Taipei and Singapore can find buyers, a state STEP grant, where your state offers one, may pay part of a trade mission, and SCORE and Wisconsin’s Small Business Development Centers give free advice.
Chinese tariffs on U.S. ginseng changed several times in 2025, and permit forms and fees are updated from time to time. Points here were checked in November 2026; confirm current tariffs, the DATCP dealer rules and the CITES and USDA permit requirements before you buy roots each season.