The Future Of Kanna Is In Our Hands
Sceletium tortusum, locally known as !k”wai’ or Kanna, is arguably one of the most profound and globally respected medicines hailing from Southern Africa. To the first nations of South Africa, the therapeutic value of Kanna has been well-understood for thousands of years. To the Western World, the first records of Kanna were in the early 1600s, when sailors passing the Cape of Good Hope were instructed to search for Kanna (which they called Cape Ginseng or Ningimm) with ‘great diligence’. These records make Kanna one of the earliest plants that Southern Africa shared with the world.??
Traditionally, Kanna has been used for a great range of properties ranging from increasing focus during hunts to recreational use.?Interestingly it is recorded that members of the San Communities who made use of Kanna were not only able to accurately identify the plant but could discern between Kanna plants that would best be used for focus and those with calming, recreational properties.?Today, we describe these properties as chemotypic variables within a species. Within Kanna, these chemotypic variations would mostly be affiliated with a group of mesembrine-type alkaloids, the most known being mesembrine, mesembrenol, mesembrenone, mesembranol, Δ7mesembrenone, and epimesembranol. We now attribute different effects of the plant to different concentrations of these alkaloids in the plant.?
Over the course of the last 400 years of international trade in Sceletium tortuosum, global knowledge of the therapeutic properties of the species has slowly grown with small quantities of dried kanna trickling into the market. This gradual growth trend changed in the 1990s, following the first comprehensive pharmaceutical studies on the species and the production of a standardized extract known as Zembirn. Today, the trade of Sceletium is steadily growing and is expected to grow with increased vigour over the next decade. Though the propensity of this powerful herb to heal many people of issues that are specifically pertinent in our world (such as anxiety and drug addiction) brings me great joy, the security of the ever-dwindling wild populations of Kanna is a topic of true concern.?
Historically Kanna grew in abundance throughout the arid parts of the Western, Northern and parts of the Eastern Cape (known as the Karoo and Klein Karoo) and into Namibia. Old traditional healers recall stories of Kanna being found ‘under most shrubs’ in the arid but diverse plains of its distribution range. This was the case for the greater part of history, where Kanna was a locally used plant harvested with respect by traditional healers and local people who maintained an inherent respect for the plant and the longevity of the species. These stories are echoed in names of areas in the Karoo that remain until this day such as ‘Kannaland’. As Kanna transitioned from a local to a global phenomenon, the demand surpassed what the wild could offer and natural populations hit a steep decline. In response to clear declines in wild plants, responsible components of the biotrade industry saw the need for the cultivation of the species.?
As it turns out, cultivation of Sceletium tortuosum is fairly easy and has numerous positive implications over and above the conservation of wild plant populations and the precious ecosystems in which they reside. As previously mentioned, Sceletium tortuosum can display itself in an array of chemotypes, each of which exhibits different profiles of the active compounds attributed to the therapeutic value of the species. Each of these different chemotypes has a unique effect on the human body. Through cultivation, it is possible to selectively breed specific chemotypes creating a meaningfully sized biomass of plant material with unique and foreseeable therapeutic properties. The ability to propagate large numbers of a specific chemotype is being supported by discovery phase projects exploring a tissue culture methodology for the species. The increased demand for cultivated Kanna over the next decade also holds the potential to provide farmers with an environmentally sensitive and water-wise alternative source of income from their land.
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As I have said many times before, in the commercial trade of indigenous medicinal plants, some species can be harvested from the wild in a sustainable manner, and with other species, it is far more challenging to do so. In the case of Sceletium tortuosum, it is my opinion that for the sustainability of the species as well as the plethora of rare, delicate succulents it shares a habitat with, wild harvesting should be discouraged. Recent developments in the cultivation of the species have greatly reduced the pressure on wild populations, however, commercial-scale illegal wild harvesting is still underway. According to Wayne Meyer from CapeNature , 3 cases of illegal harvesting of wild Sceletium tortuosum have been recorded since April 2022, amounting to a total of 2000 kg of Sceletium tortuosum confiscated by CapeNature officers. This number is not including several cases that are still open and under investigation.
With this in mind, I implore all users of Sceletium tortuosum, both domestic and commercial, to ensure a clear understanding of its source. Kanna is an incredible medicine with so much healing to give to the world, but it is also a sensitive species found naturally in a sensitive habitat that is in dire need of protection. Though regulatory bodies such as Cape Nature play integral roles in caring for species like Sceletium tortuosum, we must remember that the future of this precious plant is in every user’s hands. If ever you see evidence of illegal wild harvesting, take action and call your local Cape Nature office to support the future of Kanna.
For more information on sceletium, CLICK HERE.
Director Owner - Aquacor Property Developers (PTY) LTD
1 年Great article, well researched and interesting. As always Boyd, you are head and shoulders above the crowd in your understanding of the wealth that we have literally growing at our feet in Southern Africa.