Why scorpion venom could be big business in Nigeria

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00:00They are so friendly.

00:01Mohamed Ousmane appears at ease with a scorpion on his face.

00:05For him, what many fear, the venom in its sting, is a potential gold mine.

00:12There are over 10,000 scorpions at the farm Ousmane manages in Nigeria's Lagos.

00:18It's a venture that hopes to profit from lucrative sales into the global market.

00:24The mostly needed venoms of scorpions is the dead stalker and the hemp arrow for now.

00:32That's why if you want to go into it, you go into the two things that is demanded in

00:37the market.

00:38Twice a month, Ousmane carefully extracts venom from the scorpions and stores it in

00:43a refrigerator.

00:44Venom is used by the pharmaceutical, biotech and cosmetics industries in producing medicines

00:49and beauty products.

00:52And there is potential to make a lot of money, says Hamid Feleke, a scientist and doctoral

00:57researcher in nanotechnology at Texas Tech University.

01:01One gallon, which is equivalent to around 3.4 litres, is about 10 million US dollars.

01:08That tells us how lucrative the scorpion venom market is.

01:14However, to get even two meals is a challenge.

01:19You probably have to milk about thousands of scorpions to have something tangible to

01:26sell.

01:27Feleke says the venom's high value comes from its complex composition of proteins, enzymes,

01:34peptides and inorganic and pharmaceutical compounds.

01:37However, he warns that advances in technology means some of these compounds can now be synthesized

01:42in the lab.

01:43It's going to reduce the demand from the natural farmers.

01:51As a result, once the demand is being reduced, the price will also go down.

01:57But for now, Ousmane and his farm continue with the routine, patiently milking scorpions

02:02and storing the venom until they have enough to make a sale.