Business of…Camel products

Business of…Camel products

As Europe approves camel milk, Kipp look at some of today’s camel-related items

March 7, 2012 10:57 by shafeer

For centuries, people in the region have drunk camel’s milk, benefiting from properties that boost the body’s immune system with vitamins A, B2, C and D.

A health and lifestyle survey at the UAE University found that one in every six UAE nationals in urban areas regularly consumes camel’s milk and this ratio goes up significantly in the Al Ain region and rural areas.

That same study showed camel’s milk is lower in fat and lactose and higher in potassium, iron and Vitamin C than cow’s milk. Clinical analysis has also shown camel’s milk is 40 per cent lower in cholesterol than cow’s milk.

But don’t bother grabbing a ladder to start milking a camel just yet, camel’s milk has been available in supermarkets for at least five years now.

In 2008, Kenyan Vital Camel Milk won FDA approval in the US after a two-year application process and is now readily exported across the country.

Two years after that, Dubai launched with its own commercial version of the drink. Called Camelicious, it comes in a stylish plastic bottle and is also available in a date-flavoured variety.

The brand is already exported across the EU, and according to a blog post from Jewaira’s Boudoir, Camelicious camels are given dates, carrots, and hay to make their milk more acceptable to the Western palate. Kipp wonders what the company would be feeding the camels if it were to start distributing to other parts of the globe…Indian subcontinent? Or even Asia?

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