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Viagra hits sex organ soup trade
From CNN's Andrew Brown
HONG KONG, China -- Li Tong has made quite a name for himself in the restaurant business. But his success is based on more than just serving tasty food. The Hong Kong entrepreneur has scoured the world for special ingredients he claims can boost sexual performance. These ingredients all have one thing in common -- they are all animal penises. Among them seal, deer, ostrich and snake penises that have been hunted for thousands of years for use in traditional Chinese medicine, particularly for erectile dysfunction. The key ingredient is either cut up and whipped into a soup, or eaten whole, and in Hong Kong they still feature high on the menu. "The customers always come back for more because this strengthens their bodies and improves sexual performance," says Li. Although Li is confident his dishes are an effective tonic, these days he has a lot of competition. When Viagra arrived on the scene five years ago, the blue, diamond-shaped pill transformed the treatment of impotence, and some customers seemed to lose their appetite for various animal organs. Exploding Viagra sales hit Chinese businesess selling "sexual-enhancing" foods, pleasing wildlife activists who thought the tiny pill could save tens of thousands of animals. Lost appetite
Over the last six years, Li's business has declined around 50 percent, but its not just Viagra that's driven away customers. Li says because the local economy in this city of 6.8 million people is so weak, people are making financial health, not sexual health, a priority. "People spend money on what they feel is necessary," says Li. Despite the setbacks, Li is determined to stay in the trade, and Asian suspicion towards many Western remedies like Viagra could help boost his business. He still generates a steady income by selling seafood meals at lunchtime. And instead of being embarrassed about putting sex organs on the menu, he says he's helping people and that's something to be proud of.
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