Status Report on Global Neem Usage - Gtz

2. GLOBAL NEEM DISSEMINATION AND USAGETable 2.4:Analysis of neem oil for micro-organismsMicro-organisms Permitted concentration *Aflatoxin (B1, B2, G1, G2)East fungus, mould fungus and bacteriaEnterobacter, Staphylococcus aureus andPseudomonas aeruginosa.Total: 4µg/gTotal: 500 units/gNo contamination* According to the regulations in Germany foodstuffs and cosmetic products should not containmore than 4 µg aflatoxin (B1, B2, G1, G2) per kg. Three specific pathogens must not be present:Enterobacter, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Three groups of aerobicmicro-organisms are analysed together: yeast fungus, mould fungus and bacteria. The total ofthese three groups should be below 500 units per gram.The best method for obtaining a high quality oil is to mill seed of the best quality. Anotherpossibility is to filter it through a special membrane, but this method is very expensive and itis possible that the oil loses some important ingredients.When leaves and bark are used in cosmetics best quality raw material should be taken. Thebest harvesting period for high-quality leaves and bark is just after the main seed harvestseason. This is also the best time to make a formation cut on trees, so that leaves, twigs andbark are available automatically. As with the seeds, it is important that the harvestedmaterials are dried rapidly under clean conditions. Storage conditions also must be clean anddry.2.4 Evaluation of the Questionnaire "Global Neem Usage“- General Questions Pertaining to NeemThis chapter focuses on the results obtained on evaluating the general questionnaires, thekey emphasis being on neem usage.To enable a better comparison, the results of the evaluation were put into different groups.The general questions were grouped according to regions such as Asia, Africa and theCaribbean/Latin America, with the industrialised countries as a separate group. The specificquestions, which allowed for several responses, were grouped together.The diagrams show the frequency of positive responses in relation to the number of completedquestionnaires. It has to be pointed out at this juncture that the relation between theresponses received are not a fully appropriate reflection of the relations between the regions/countries. Conclusions could only be made as to the presence or absence of the criteriareferred to in the questionnaires. Conclusions as to the number of trees and their distribution,in particular the various forms of neem usage in the given regions/countries, are frequentlybased on estimates by the individuals and institutions questioned.17