David S. Lee & Liao Shi
David S. Lee & Liao Shi Kun that target the male consumer. Companies claim that wild turtles are used in its production in that it is widely believed that farmed turtles do not have the same effectiveness. However, it is generally assumed that most of the turtle wine currently being produced is made from farmed stocks. The price of the various brands of commercially produced turtle wine suggests that it is not made from wild caught turtles. Tortoise jelly (also sold under names such as turtle shell gelatin, Guiling Jelly, and Guilinggao) is a cream drink well known for its use in traditional medicine. Tortoise jelly has a history dating back to the early Qing Dynasty (1636–1911) when the Emperor declared it to be a precious drug. It is made from Chinese Big-headed turtles or Chinese Three-striped Box Turtles and various medical plants, and is used to help with hyperactivity of the liver and gallbladder issues, for improvement of blood and kidneys, muscle growth, relief of itchy shin, treatment of acne, constipation, and also as a beauty product. Today it is no longer reserved for royal families, and can be purchased from street venders. It is a popular beverage in Guangdong and Guangxi provinces but the formula is no longer dependent on big-headed, three-striped box turtles, or wild caught turtles. Tortoise jelly is commonly exported to Southeastern Asia countries. Turtle soup is made from hard-shelled turtles, typically with vegetable and pork as additives. This is the most popular use of turtles in Chinese restaurants and a favorite of government officials in the provinces of southern China. Turtle soup is regarded both as a food and a medicine for many aspects of life. It is perceived to enrich yin and tonify yang, as well as a treatment for dual deficiency of yin and yang, and also to enrich sexual function, enhance the immune system, detoxify and to heal eczema and other sores. Soup prepared from soft-shelled turtles (primarily P. sinensis) is a totally different item, and is made from the turtles and vegetables without the pork additives. The medical values are perceived to be similar to those of soup prepared from hard-shelled turtles. The majority of turtle products are used in soups, comparatively modest numbers of turtles are used in preparation medical capsules, injections or oral liquids. The combination of the use of traditional and modern medicine deserves special mention. While modern medicine is now typically recommended for treatment of cancer and other serious medical issues, these treatments are often combined with traditional medicine. For example, the consumption of turtle is recommended for preventing cancer but not for its treatment. In addition eating turtle is believed to reduce the side effects of chemotherapy treatments. Creating and meeting the demand for the marketing of turtles for traditional Chinese medicine and health products In the early 1990’s when Chinese women of the Middle and Long Distance Project broke world records and won many events in international track and field competitions (1991 – 9 th Asian Championships, 1992 – World Youth Athletics Championships, Barcelona Olympic Games, 1993 – Track and Field World Championships, 5 th World Cup Marathon, 1994, Hiroshima Asian Games, 1995 – Dalian International Marathon) their coach boasted that the 14 RADIATA 23 (2), 2014
Turtles in Traditional Chinese Medicine athletes had won their metals because they had been physically conditioned on a diet of soft-shell turtles. The turtle diet assisted in rapid physical recovery from the taxing training and competitive events. This resulted in an instant demand for the turtles among the populace of China. Numerous soft-shell farms were soon created and ‘soft-shell drink’ (a health product) was widely marketed through the country. Prior to this hard-shelled freshwater turtles held the major portion of the turtle market. In 1995 the maker of the recently famed soft-shell drink’ was exposed to a scandal resulting from a visit by a news reporter to their production plant. There was actually only a single turtle in the plant. The health drink was made almost exclusively with sugar water. The negative media exposure put the ‘pharmaceutical company’ marketing the drink into bankruptcy. People became suspicious of the special healing powers of soft-shelled turtles, and sales of this and similar drinks went into decline. During this same period many of the newly developed soft-shell farms suffered high mortality in their breeding stocks because the technology for farming these turtles was not yet well developed. This when combined with peoples’ suspicions regarding the health benefits of these turtles and marketing credibility put many of the newly created farms out of business. By the end of 1996 some soft-shell farms began to have success in breeding the turtles, and a number of other farms specializing in Reeves Turtles or Red-eared Sliders started to enter their products into the local food, traditional medicine, and pet markets. Between 1996 and 2010 turtle farming in Chi- Fig. 22. Chinese turtle farm. Photo: T. Blanck RADIATA 23 (2), 2014 15
