“It is not a secret that Jonathan Leakey has been exporting the products of the tree, Prunus africana to the European market for the last 20 years.”
- Newton Kulundu. (2003)

Until the then environment minister, Newton Kulundu lambasted Jonathan Leakey (kin to the famous Leakey family), the general public had sparse knowledge of the African Plum (Prunus africana the scientific name and muiri or mweri in Kikuyu).
Kulundu not only castigated Leakey, he went ahead and directed the country’s principal conservation agency, the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) to revoke Leakey’s license to export this product.

Just why was Kulundu irritated? What made the no-nonsense minister to take such an action? The answer to these questions lies in the importance and the multiple benefits that humanity derives from this tree.

The World Agroforestry Center (WAC formerly ICRAF) defines this tree as: “Prunus africana popularly known as Pygeum is a large evergreen tree that grows in the afromontane of Africa. It is the only species of genus Prunus native to Africa and can grow to a height of up to 40 metres. It has pendulous branches with thick oblong-shaped, leather-like, mat-coloured leaves and creamy white flowers. The fruit (drupe) resembles a cherry when ripe. The seeds are believed to be recalcitrant. The dark-brown to gray bark of the trunk is the part used for medicinal purposes. The wood is durable and has been used in household goods. The tree is present in highland mountain forests in Africa and Madagascar, occurring in Afromontane forest islands from 4500 to 6000 feet.”
This is the definition of the tree, which only sets the tone. Why is it so important?

“P.africana has been identified as top priority internationally for conservation and development because of its bark. The fresh bark, leaf and fruits contain amygalin, yielding hydrocyanic acid when crushed; hence they have an almond flavour. The bark extracts are used to make capsules for benign prostatic hyperplasia and propecia for male pattern baldness. The bark was traditionally powdered and drunk as a tea for genito-urinary complaints, allergies, inflammation, kidney disease, malaria, stomachache and fever among other uses. Folkloric use in Africa attracted the attention of European researchers and a patent was issued in 1966 for use of Pygeum bark extract in the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).” WAC’s Prunus Database reveals. This view is echoed by a report authored by Anthony Cunningham, Elias Ayuk, Steven Franzel, Bahiru Duguma and Christian Asanga, titled “An economic evaluation of Medicinal Tree Cultivation”, a “People and Plants Working Paper” which asserts: “Traded internationally, and harvested from the wild, Prunus africana is hardly a ‘minor forest product’. The quantity of bark (dried or extract) that is exploited annually for export to Europe ranges between 3,200 – 4900 tons. This is the largest volume of any African medicinal plant in international trade, and provides a case study with practical implications for policy on harvesting and sale of forest products. Neither the uncontrolled harvesting of wild Prunus africana populations, not tree cultivation as one alternative to wild harvest are easy problems to resolve.”

In the same vein with these views, “Herbal Gram” The journal of the American Botanical Council (ABC) notes: “Among the 200-plus species in the genus prunus, it is the only one native to Africa. European interest in the species began as early as the 1700s when medicine men from Natal tribes in South Africa related to early settlers the palliative effect of pygeum bark on bladder pains. Similarly the Bakweri peoples on the slopes of Mount Cameroon revealed to colonists that they had used the bark of prunus to treat “old man’s disease” for centuries. Despite the clearly derived indigenous knowledge it was a French entrepreneur Dr Jacques Debat, who lodged the first patent for Pygeum bark extract in 1966. Today it is no longer one of nature’s secrets, with thousands of Internet addresses advertising its merits.”

It is for these reasons that the tree is of utmost importance. This precious tree grows in Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Kenya, Madagascar, Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and Tanzania. Both the Nairobi and Washington-based World Agroforestry Centre and Future Harvest respectively estimate that the world market currently stands at US$220 million. Of this $220 million Kenya controls 60% of the world market. Translated this means that for two decades Jonathan Leakey pocketed some $132 million every year for twenty years!

“At least four European companies have interests in Prunus African bark for medicinal purposes; Laboratories Debat (France) and its subsidiary company Plantecam Medicam in Cameroon; Madaus (Germany, Spain); Prosynthese (France); Inveni Della Beffa and Indena Spa (Italy). Bark is bought for 150-170 CFA per kilo in Cameroon (equivalent of US$0.35) and in Kenya the price was US$2. Capsules containing the bark extract are marketed in Europe a 15 tablet box costing US$7-8…The Italian companies import bark extract from Madagascar and other European companies import processed and unprocessed bark from Cameroon, Kenya, Uganda and Zaire (DRC). Extract in tablets or capsules are marketed under two main trade names: ‘Tadenan’, produced by Laboratories Debat (France) and ‘Pygenil’ produced by Indena Spa (Italy).”

This in place one would expect that many Kenyan farmers are already benefiting from this lucrative trade. Far from it. And this explains the gist of Kulundu’s anger. The story of Prunus africana is one that is laced by exploitation, injustice and plain manipulation. A tale that smirks of biopiracy.
60% of the world’s demand for this tree is supplied by Kenya. In Kenya Prunus grows on the Aberdares, the slopes of Mt Kenya, Mt Elgon, Cherangani Hills, Timboroa, Nandi Forests, Taita Hills, Chyulu Hills, Tugen and Nyiro (Marsabit) hills, Kakamega Forests and Mau ranges. Archival records reveal that the earliest Prunus plantation cultivation took place at a 0.4-hectare plot in Ngong, Kenya in 1913.

Ironically until Kulundu revoked the license, Jonathan Leakey (elder brother to Richard) was the only one licensed to export the tree. A highly explosive dossier prepared by WAC, reveals that Jonathan Leakey is the main supplier to the French firm Prosynthese, which is a subsidiary of the Fournier group merchants of the Tadenan tablets. The report titled, “Review of Trade Structure and Elaboration of an Identification Guide for Prunus Africana”, further reveals that on average Leakey exports close to 300 tonnes of dried bark per year, by exploiting Kenya’s ungazetted forests.
“After the bark purchase, Leakey obtains an authorization letter from the nearest forestry office to move his products to Mombasa, point of shipping to Prosynthese, France. Then he obtains export permits from KWS. Each permit is applied for 50 tonnes. Every year, four to five permits are issued to Leakey who is currently the only exporter of Prunus bark from Kenya.” Says the confidential WAC dossier. It is obvious to see that Jonathan enjoyed the advantages to get export license for Prunus thanks to his younger, brother’s (Richard Leakey’s) vantage positions at National Museums of Kenya and Kenya Wildlife Service in the past decades.

The no-holds barred report goes on to add that Leakey would offer local farmers extremely low prices for their bark. Most farmers who know the value of this tree have since been discouraged, thanks to Leakey’s monopoly and its pitiful pay package. Indeed the report discloses of an incident where a farmer opted to burn his Prunus trees for charcoal rather than sell them to Leakey. Apart from Leakey, no one else has been offered incentives to trade in the plant. “The lack of awareness, profitable market and current economic crisis only encourage farmers to clear Prunus for quick cash from tea plantations,” the WAC dossier adds.

Defending himself Leakey says: “Prosynthese got my name from a friend and came to me and asked whether I would be interested and able to supply them with Prunus africana bark, so I said ‘yes, why not’. All the bark I get comes from trees being felled in different parts of the highlands. I have four collecting teams of scouts who keep track of where the trees are and what is happening to them. Usually the trees are felled when a forest is being cleared for settlements or when tea estates are being extended. They are just cut down and burned for charcoal or used as firewood. So we strip off the bark from the felled tree, dry it and export.”

Courtesy of this and the mere fact that most Kenyan farmers have nothing to gain owing to the monopoly enjoyed by Leakey Prunus has a bleak future. “Surrounding forests have been clear cut for forest products and agricultural land, limiting the tree’s habitats. The bark harvest is primarily taken from the wild in Cameroon, Kenya Tanzania, Madagascar as well as the Democratic Republic of Congo has had a devastating effect on wild populations of the species. This overexploitation sparked conservation concerns, resulting in the species being listed in Appendix II of CITES (Convention on International Trade In Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora), in 1994, becoming effective in 1995 in order to monitor species in international trade. In theory this means that countries of import have to check these permits upon entry. The scientific authority of an export country advises its management authority on the sustainability of a consignment and ideally, the export permit would be based on sound inventory and management information. All of the countries exporting its bark are signatories to CITES, meaning that the bark exported to western countries is harvested from a sustainable source. However, the reality is somewhat different and despite the legislation the unsustainable exploitation of this species is well recorded. Undoubtedly, quotas and permits are being issued without reference to adequate biological baseline information.”

But all is not lost.
Dr Tony Simons, one of the principal scientists at WAC confers: “Men around the world are about to lose a leading natural remedy for prostate disorders unless we can stop the savaging of this tree, it will be gone forever. Attempts to manage the tree sustainably in the wild seem doomed. The best way to ensure that this endangered tree survives is to domesticate it and to encourage farmers to plant it on their plots.”

Currently the Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI), the World Agroforestry Centre (WAC), the National Museums of Kenya (NMK) and Cameroon’s Institut de Recherché Agronomique ed Development, are involved in research to propagate this tree, and save it from obliteration from the face of the earth. These institutions with help from UNESCO are seeking to domesticate this tree by collecting germ plasm from extant strands.

Herbal Gram reveals “The International Centre for Research in Agroforestry (ICRAF – now WAC) together with its national partners (Kenya Forestry Research Institute – KEFRI; Institut de Recherche Agronomique et Development – IRAD) has with modest funding from UNESCO, carried out germ plasm collections in Kenya (2 populations) and Cameroon (3 populations) These have been planted out in large blocks to serve as conservation stands, comparative trials, seed orchard and selection gardens for sexual or vegetative propagation. They have also been planted in farmers’ fields as part of a participatory domestication effort. The traits for improvement in the species logically center around yield (quality, amount, timing) These traits are in urgent need of assessment to determine the genetic control and expected gains from selection.”

Dr Simons puts it more succinctly: “ This tree has an enormous cash value. We are seeking to understand and forecast the demand that is now creating a dire situation so that we can preserve a species, produce a sustainable supply of bark and generate income for poor farmers in developing countries. It is quite a tremendous leap to domesticate a wild tree so that it can grow in farmers’ fields. To put it in perspective it was only 50 years ago that tree breeding began on commercial tree species. Amazingly only 40 out 0f 60,000 wild tree species have been domesticated so far. Just as the Panda bear serves as a symbol of protecting endangered animals, Prunus africana is the icon for saving trees threatened by extinction.”

However one thing is for certain, if Prunus africana is to survive, and the conservation (domestication) venture succeed, the profits have to trickle down to the common farmers.