4.1 All primary processing procedures should fully conform with regional and/or national guidelines on food hygiene and personnel entrusted with handling of medicinal plants/herbal drugs should be required to have a high degree of personal hygiene (including personnel working in the field) and have received adequate training regarding their hygiene responsibilities.

4.2 The welfare of all staff involved in growing and processing should be ensured.

4.3 Personnel must be protected from contact with toxic or potentially allergenic medicinal plants/herbal drugs by means of adequate protective clothes.

4.4 Persons suffering from known infectious diseases transmittable via food, including diarrhoea, or being transmitters of such diseases, must be suspended from areas where they are in contact with medicinal plants/herbal drugs, according to regional and/or national regulations.

4.5 Persons with open wounds, inflammations and skin-infections should be suspended from areas where the plant processing takes place or should have to wear appropriate protective clothing/gloves until their complete recuperation.

4.6 Personnel should receive adequate botanical training before performing tasks that require this knowledge.

4.7 Collectors must have sufficient knowledge of the plant they have to collect. This includes identification, characteristics and habitat requirements such as shade, humidity, soil etc. The collectors must be able to differentiate between the collected species and botanically related and/or morphologically similar species to avoid any risk to public health. Collectors should have sufficient knowledge about the best time to harvest and harvesting technique and the importance of primary processing to guarantee the best possible quality.

4.8 If collectors are without sufficient knowledge, a local supervisor should guarantee the education, supervision and documentation.

4.9 It is advisable to educate all personnel dealing with the medicinal plant/herbal drug and all those engaged in its cultivation regarding cultivation techniques including the appropriate use of herbicides and pesticides.

4.10 Collectors of medicinal plants/herbal drugs should be instructed on all issues relevant to the protection of the environment and conservation of plant species. This will include information on regulations related to protected species.