Regards, Ivan
Posted on 04/21/2006 6:14:58 AM PDT by MadIvan
Camel's milk could become the latest super food to hit the shelves of health food shops and upmarket retailers.
The United Nations is calling for the milk, which is rich in vitamins B and C and has 10 times more iron than cow's milk, to be sold to the West.
Camel's milk, which is slightly saltier than traditional milk, is drunk widely across the Arab world and is well suited to cheese production.
Harrods and Fortnum & Mason are said to be interested in the product.
As well as its high mineral and vitamin content, research has suggested that antibodies in camel's milk can help fight diseases like cancer, HIV/Aids Alzheimer's and hepatitis C.
And work is on-going to see whether it can have a role in reducing the effects of diabetes and heart disease.
The UN's food arm, the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), wants producers in countries from Mauritania to Kazakhstan to start selling camel's milk to the West.
It hopes donors and investors will help develop the market.
'Humps in production'
Meat and dairy expert at the FAO Anthony Bennett said: "The potential is massive. Milk is money."
He said there were 200 million potential customers in the Arab world and tens of millions more in Europe, the Americas and Africa.
He suggested the market could be worth at least £5.6 billion although improvements are needed along the supply chain.
"No one's suggesting intensive camel dairy farming, but just with improved feed, husbandry and veterinary care daily yields could rise to 20 litres," he added.
And since fresh camel milk fetches roughly a dollar a litre on African markets it would mean serious money for the nomadic herders who now have few other sources of revenue, he added.
Tapping the market for camel milk, however, involves resolving a series of humps in production, manufacturing and marketing, the FAO said.
One problem lies in the milk itself, which has so far not proved to be compatible with the UHT (Ultra High Temperature) treatment needed to make it long-lasting.
But the main challenge stems from the fact that the producers involved are, overwhelmingly, nomads.
A spokeswoman for the British Nutrition Foundation said: "Camel's milk could be a useful addition to the diet as it contains calcium and B vitamins and is lower in saturated fat than cow's milk.
"However, it is more expensive than cow's milk and does have quite an acquired taste that some people may not like."
Regards, Ivan
Ping!
Try it Ivan and let us know how it tastes...we volunteer you.....LOL!
Give me a good ole Methane producing cow any day!
If this is such a wonderful, life saving, Arabian product, then why has the market not adopted it and why does the UN have to pimp it?
I suspect it's going to be another thing the trendies will have to try out. First it was goat's cheese, then it was foie gras, and then it was pomengranate juice. Now they'll be pouring camel milk on their muesli in the morning.
Regards, Ivan
I'll be vacationing in the UK shortly. (Early to mid-May.)
I will avoid this new product, however.
(Of course, I can probably get it very easily HERE, but have never really had any desire to do so.)
"Camel's milk could hit UK shelves"
To be followed by camel dung cookies?
If you are on holiday anywhere near Birmingham UK I will buy you a pint of refreshing Batrachian milk. :0)
I've tried goat milk. Not bad. They eat grass like cows and sheep. Camels eat weeds. And how does one go about milking camels in the first place?
This is what I eat with my cereal for breakfast:
Camel's milk, which is slightly saltier than traditional milk, is drunk widely across the Arab world and is well suited to cheese production.
Let's not talk about that.
Regards, Ivan
Pomegranate juice?
My girlfriend is not a trendy type - but she bought an over-priced bottle of it just to see what it tasted like.
She couldn't finish the bottle. Said it was terrible. What she did drink gave her an upset stomach too.
An acquaintance of mine, also female, found a way to deal with that - she spiked it with vodka.
I'm not sure if that diminishes the supposed health benefits, however.
Regards, Ivan
... file under "Islam and Progress" ...
LOL!
I'll pass that advice on to her!
If it has vodka in it, it can't be that bad!
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