Status report on global Neem usage - Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal

2.2 Potential Uses of Neem
2. GLOBAL NEEM DISSEMINATION AND USAGE
The neem tree has numerous potential uses; in fact, a use can be found for all parts of the
tree (1, 2, 5, 13, 15-19).
Table 2.1: Overview of the ways of using the different parts of neem trees and their
raw materials
Part of plant/
raw material
Potential Usages
Seeds Oil extraction, plant protection, raw material for producing commercial
pesticides, stock protection, medicine, animal care
Oil Soap production, raw material for producing commercial pesticides and
cosmetics, plant protection, stock and textile protection, medicine, animal
care, refining to edible oil, lubrication oil for engines, lamp oil, candle production
Press cake Plant protection, raw material for producing commercial pesticides, soil
additive, fertiliser, animal fodder and hygiene
Fruits Oil extraction, ripe fruits as food, medicine
Leaves Medicine, cosmetics, mulching material, plant protection, stock protection,
animal care, animal fodder, vegetables
Twigs Feathery leaf stalk (twigs) for dental hygiene
Wood Firewood, construction material, furniture
Bark Toothpaste and dental hygiene, medicine, cosmetics
Roots Medicine
The tree is found in at least 78 countries and is used in a further nine (for details, refer to the
table in the Annex: “Occurrence and usage of neem by countries”).
Table 2.2: Estimated occurrence of neem by world regions
Neem occurrence
in millions
Worldwide
- Medicinal Plants (13, 15, 19, 47)
Asia/
Oceania
Africa Caribbean/
Latin America
Industrialised
countries
64.1 - 91.1 27.1 - 39.1 31 - 45 5.5 - 6.5 ca. 0.5
The oldest known use of neem is as a medicinal plant. The therapeutic properties of the
fruits, seeds, oil, leaves, bark and roots, which have a long tradition in Indian Ayurveda and
Unani medicine, are expounded in 3000-year-old Sanskrit writings.
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