NZ men go wild for herbal boost

The growing popularity of a herbal aphrodisiac could be putting the plant it is made from in danger of extinction.

Tongkat ali, a Malaysian herb, has found a ready market since being introduced to New Zealand.

Sam Kamani, a manager at Herbal Ignite, said people who couldn't afford Viagra, which cost $25 per pill, are switching to herbal remedies costing less than $2 a pop.

Professor Howard Frederick, a business lecturer at AUT University, said he started importing tongkat ali last year for the speciality chocolate business he runs with his wife after discovering it on a trip to Malaysia.

His wife, food scientist Dr Hanna Frederick, said orders have come from throughout New Zealand and overseas since she started marketing her chocolates last month.

Tongkat ali has been used for centuries in Southeast Asia for its perceived health-giving properties.

But the rising global demand has raised concerns over sustainability of the herb in Malaysia. Authorities there say it may disappear by 2014, the New Straits Times reported.

Dr Abdul Rashid Ab Malik, deputy director-general of Forest Research Institute Malaysia, said unplanned commercial harvesting and increasing demand may force people to stop relying on Malaysia's herbal answer to Viagra.