Camel milk offers hope in Tunisia's poor and arid south

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00:01In this experimental station in the Medanin region of Tunisia, camels wait to be milked.

00:07Here, under the supervision of the Arid Regions Institute,

00:10researchers have been able to develop techniques for pasteurizing their milk

00:14while preserving as many of its nutritional benefits as possible.

00:18Reputed to be hypoallergenic and good for the immune system,

00:22camel's milk has antibacterial and antiviral properties

00:26that can be used in the treatment of diabetes.

00:29For Dr. Amil Zbui, a researcher at the Institute who has been studying its benefits for 20 years,

00:35camel's milk has enormous but little exploited potential.

00:39We need to work together to get scientists, doctors, biologists and pharmacists

00:44to work together to find a form of this milk that can be sold as medicine or a food supplement.

00:50The project was launched in 2023 by entrepreneur Latifa Fifrita,

00:54who was looking to invest in her region and promote a local product.

00:58She based the project on the work of Dr. Zbui and her team.

01:02At first, it was difficult to convince the farmers to sell her their milk,

01:06but she says today there is a real relationship of trust.

01:10We currently produce between 350 and 500 litres a day and our aim is to hopefully reach 1,000 litres a week

01:18within the next year and a half to two years.

01:22The milking station also serves as a training centre to show farmers the advantages of mechanisation.

01:30A simple pot milker can produce 6 to 7 litres per day per camel compared to just 1 to 2 litres by hand.

01:37For the institute, promoting the mechanisation and accessibility of the camel milk industry

01:43will not only add to the product's value, but also help create new jobs.

01:47So...

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