Oncidium mask

[RoseSD]

Yes there are unethical people everywhere but again, NOT the point of my post. I am glad the orchid industry there is developing innovative technologies to enable new uses for parts of orchids that would otherwise gone wasted if unsold.
Life and humans are not perfect that is clear; upkeep of humanity also needs no gray color lens to scrutinize all things at all times. Celebrating the beauty that orchids and other life's gifts inspire shouldn't be complicated or challenged even on an orchid board.

[Roberta]

One thing that bothers me here is that the industry is treating orchids as disposable... selling cut flowers does not mean that the rest of the plant is wasted... in most of the cut flower trade, the plants are re-bloomed and then their flower spikes can be harvested again. (Growers have been doing this for many years. ) Mature plants take a long time to grow to blooming size, what a waste to take something that might have taken 4 or 5 years to get to blooming size, cut the flowers (just one "crop") and "process" the plant.

[Dimples]

Originally Posted by RoseSD

NOT the point of my post.

Celebrating the beauty that orchids and other life's gifts inspire shouldn't be complicated or challenged even on an orchid board.

Maybe OB needs to add a Positive Vibes Only forum for people that don't want to engage in a full picture discussion of a particular topic.

[RoseSD]

Originally Posted by Dimples

Maybe OB needs to add a Positive Vibes Only forum for people that don't want to engage in a full picture discussion of a particular topic.

"Full picture" discussion requires adequate understanding on the context and details. Jumping into one's own conclusion about how orchids are treated from a single end product is not a helpful starting point for any constructive discussion, positive or not.

[Dimples]

Celebrating orchids without complications or challenges is probably better suited to the Orchid Lounge or Beginner forum. If you don't want to engage in an advanced discussion that may include logical inferences, don't post in the AD forum.

So far, nobody has jumped to any conclusions that aren't based on evidence, reasoning, and historical trends in human/economic behavior. Wild populations can suffer from poaching when plants (also applies to animals & other natural resources) become popular or are used in novel ways. We already see this with wild plants being poached and sold to hobbyists. This behavior is unfortunately rampant in the horticulture/plant trade industry.

The orchid juice facial mask is a new way to use orchids. If the masks get popular enough to the point that it provides would-be-poachers with the economic incentive to steal wild plants, someone somewhere in the world will do it. Ignoring this eventuality won't make it go away.

If you know of additional details/resources that show that these masks aren't currently, and will likely never, result in poaching of wild orchids, please share them. I'd love to learn more about how the producers are able to avoid the negative effect of new fads so their methods can be shared and applied to other similar circumstances.

[RoseSD]

Wow Dimples, your elitist attitude is pretty yuk but not entirely surprising, sorry to say.
Read the post again please, and kindly refrain from continuing to distract from the original topic. Much appreciated.

[Dimples]

Elitist...
"

elitist

"

[Ray]

Originally Posted by RoseSD

Wow Dimples, your elitist attitude is pretty yuk but not entirely surprising, sorry to say.

What is "elitist" about that? It reads to me like someone who is looking at the broader picture.

[WaterWitchin]

Originally Posted by RoseSD

Wow Dimples, your elitist attitude is pretty yuk but not entirely surprising, sorry to say.
Read the post again please, and kindly refrain from continuing to distract from the original topic. Much appreciated.

Been holding my tongue on this particular topic. One week later, I fold. I concur with Ray that calling someone an elitist who is questioning the overall societal consequences of your original topic... using extract of oncidium as an ingredient in a facial mask... is not only an incorrect assessment, but also not real nice to calling someone a name because you disagree. How does that distract from the original topic? Is the topic here in the advanced discussion thread because you want discussion?

Patents for extract of Ondontoglossum and Ondotonia for a moisturizing use in cosmetics have been around since early 2000s. Dendrobium and derivatives from certain Dens have been a part of Chinese medicine for thousands of years, and now being researched by big pharma for quite some time.

When I was young, cosmetic companies regularly used animals as their testing ground for creating new serums for faces and bodies. I could go on and on about the topic, but for what purpose?

On point with your topic and subsequent comments as requested, I think the opinions about using an orchid extract for a facial mask (the extract is nothing "new" in the cosmetics world) is entirely appropriate discussion lent toward the "upkeep of humanity" in the Advanced Discussion forum. My thought is your analogy of "gray color lens to scrutinize all things at all times" is a misnomer. I'd say more of a clear focus lens is being used as the discussion point, as opposed to looking at it through gray or rose colored lenses.

If we don't scrutinize science as society, who will be the watch dog? Other scientists? That's what Advanced Discussions is about.

As a moderator, I can always move your thread to Off Topic or Orchid Lounge, if that's your desire.