First published September 23, 2024. On September 21, 2024, Marathon County in north-central Wisconsin marked the Ginseng Festival to celebrate ginseng root production. 

The county is famous as the source of the bulk of Wisconsin’s American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius). For example in 2017, central Wisconsin’s harvest represented 98% of all American ginseng, according to Wausau Daily.

2024’s festival took place at the 400 Block of the city of Wausau, via the Visit Wausau event organizer.

Before the celebration, the  county planned to offer educational demonstrations between 9 and 11 a.m. local time. According to Visit Wausau’s Director of Operations Jodi Maguire, the root’s extract serves as medicinal pill, food infusion and lotion.

The actual festival began 12.00 p.m through 3 p.m., during which visitors interacted with ginseng vendors, food retailers and live music. 

First Ever Ginseng Festival

This is hardly the first event, for on September 3, 2022, the local ginseng community participated in Wausau’s Marathon Fun Days. 

On that date, the organizers touted that ginseng brings a $60 to $80 million worth of impact to the Wisconsin community.

Visit Wausau has since then promoted the importance of the medicinal root in Marathon County via the Ginseng Festival.

Indeed, ginseng is an important produce of the entire state, which earns around $40 million annually, according to WAOW news, quoting Civil Eats.

It is no surprise then for the establishment of the fall festival to celebrate the county’s 125-year old ginseng sector. To learn more on the place of ginseng in Wisconsin as a whole, read on the statistics below. 

Wisconsin Ginseng Statistics

American Ginseng root production in the United States is concentrated in Wisconsin. The state  accounts for between 90 and 98% of American cultivated ginseng roots. In 2016, 98% of the national production came from just one part of the state: North Central Wisconsin, particularly Marathon County. While southwestern Wisconsin produces much of the highly valuable wild ginseng, Marathon county harvests 90 to 95% of the state’s cultivated ginseng.

How much Ginseng does the U.S. export as a portion of Wisconsin’s contribution? 

Around 90% of the U.S.’ ginseng shipments come from Wisconsin. The United States as a whole averages half a million pounds in exports per year. For instance in 2016, the U.S. exported 590,000 pounds worth $20 million, according to Wausau Herald Daily, while in 2017 it shipped $19.26 million in value. The low tonnage owes to the fact that it needs up to 250 dried roots to make a single pound. 

Is ginseng Wisconsin’s main crop? 

Ginseng is but one of many crops in Wisconsin and it is not the leader in statewide crop production. According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Wisconsin led federal production of corn for silage, cranberries and snap beans in 2021 at 147%, 58.9% and 44.3% of national production respectively. This is even as it has retained its number one status for ginseng at the national level.

When did Wisconsin first grow ginseng? 

Cultivation of ginseng in Wisconsin came in 1904 when Fromm family brothers transplanted roots from the forest around them. North American Wild ginseng gathering has a longer history, however, that extends to the beginning of the 1700s in Canada.