THE tongkat ali is popular enough, for obvious reasons but its many other cousins in the herb family are not as fortunate. Devoid of similar abilities to fire the imagination, they are the wall flower of the plant kingdom.

The aggressive promotions for the herbal variant of Viagra has also caused the more mundane varieties of herbs to be further obscured by its rising popularity.

Step into any restaurant or mamak stall, and there it is. – the the tarik tongkat Ali, or for a more oriental flavour, the kopi ginseng.

Even taxi drivers have seemingly joined the promotional team. They have taken to peddling the products to unsuspecting passengers, who would have much preferred to have just shared a meaningless conversation.

But activating or re-activating a man’s libido, is just one of the properties of herbs – pharmacists may want to make a firm stand on this.

The majority of Malaysian, however do not appear to be aware of the various benefits of herbal plants.

Some herbs may be ornamental but others can potentially work wonders on the liver, kidney and blood – the ubiquitous misai kucing (orthosiphon staminesu) and dukung anak (phyllanthus ninuri) being but two.

The nilam (pogostemon cablin) and kesum (polygonum minus) waft sweet scent, while the ulam raja (cosmos caudatus) and pegaga salad (centella asiatica) whet the appetite.

A lack of understanding and knowledge can also prove catastrophic – instead of boosting vitality, one may just wilt away as herbs can be harmful if used improperly or if an inferior product is consumed.

Going by the abundance of herbs in the country too, efforts to develop them as an industry that can foreseeably promise significant returns have been minimal.

Malaysian have been lulled into considering them as nothing more than part of the nation’s lush greenery.

Of the 27,000 species of the herbs, 1,230 have been found to have medicinal value and the majority of them can be found in the country.

But ironically, it is the foreign pharmaceutical giants that have conducted scientific research on the benefits of the various herbs and marketed them in attractive packages bask to us.

And lures by the promise of anything from slimmer silhouette to an added spring in the step – Malaysian are snapping up these products from off the shelves of local pharmacies. And at exorbitant prices too.

The country imports some RM2 billion a year in herbal products, when it should be exporting at least as much.

It so obvious from this alone why the general attitude must change and soon.

The people’s mindset must be revitalised, and no tonics can be more effective in doing so than a gentle nudge in the right direction.

Happily, some effort are being made. Both to crate awareness and to develop the local herb industry.

Only recently, the National Herb Garden Education Project was launched. It aims to encourage students nationwide to cultivate herb gardens in their schools.

This way, they will be able to identify common herbs plants and at the same time, study the scientific basis behind their benefits.

Universiti Malaysia Sabah and several private colleges with overseas twinning programme have also included the study of natural plant resources, including herbs, in their environmental science resources. Seminars are also increasingly being held.

Realising its prospect, the Government too will be utilising modern methods to promote and expand the herbal industry which it admits it currently undertaken on a small scale.

A hefty RM2.14 million has also been allocated for the development of the industry in Sungkai, Perak, involving a 200ha plantation.

A centre for research into local herbs and medicines will be operational in Pulau Upeh in Malacca from this month.

A target has been set too: By the year 2010, Malaysia hopes to be tha world’s largest herb producer.

To ensure it is met, an international Advisory Panel comprising the world’s leading authorities in different disciplines has been assembled to help formulate a plan.

A lofty goal? As they say, nothing is beyond the grasp of those who take stringent measures to push their objectives to its logical conclusion.

But as MARDI research officer Indu Bala pointed out recently: "We still have a lot to learn."

08/11/1999