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Malabar was entirely distinct from the rest of the country in terms of its geographical features -mountains, sea coast, rivers, fauna and flora etc. The physical environment of Malabar helped to create a unique economic pattern and a typical social structure and organization. During the pre-colonial period the people of Malabar led an eco-friendly life which was dependent on the environment. But they never tried to exploit nature and natural resources excessively other than to cater to their basic requirements. The indigenous people interfere with the environment only for their subsistence. The tribal people living in the thick forest were well aware about herbal medicine and practices. The pre-colonial village life was self-sufficient. However the advent of western colonial powers in Malabar changed the scenario, and they introduced new colonial policies. The process of colonialism resulted in some degree of structured change in the economy and society of Malabar. They made deliberate attempts to change many of the traditional practices. As a part of commercialization of agriculture, they implemented a plantation economy in the region. The westerners came to India mainly for trade and later transformed our environment base. The British government introduced economic policies in Malabar mainly conducive for spice trade. The large-scale expansion of cash crops resulted in the scarcity of food and destruction of wide forest areas. The British government converted thousands of acres of forest land into coffee and tea plantations.