In the 90's botanical industry has become a mainstream phenomenon in Canada and all of North America. Mass market sales of botanical medicine products expanded from ginseng, garlic and ginkgo to over 30 herbs reaching over 6 billion $ in value. Import and export of botanicals has blossomed and botanical medicine has started to get integrated into modern clinical practices. As a result regulatory environment has undergone changes in both Canada and USA. Recognising an overall lack of scientific data on safety, quality and efficacy of botanicals, funds were made available for research on high quality production, processing and clinical evaluation of herbal drugs. The industry initiatives toward standardising methodology for analytical testing of botanicals and the entry of multinational pharmaceutical corporations into the arena of phytopharmaceutical and nutritional supplements were landmark events for botanical industry in North America. The implications of such research and industry developments will be illustrated in case studies featuring medicinal crops that are gaining popularity in Canada, borage, echinacea and stivia.