A key ingredient in the two Hot Plants formulas is MacaPure™ a trademarked extract of maca root, made by Naturex, has been the subject of several studies published in peer-reviewed medical journals. MacaPure is made from certified organic maca root that comes from the central highlands of Peru. The maca used to make MacaPure extract is not only grown organically, but is purchased at a wage that is at least double that of the market price. Thus the maca used in the Hot Plants formulas makes a positive environmental contribution through sustainable agriculture, and a positive cultural contribution through fair wage practices. With MacaPure, everybody wins.

Medicine Hunter field research is largely sponsored by Naturex of Avignon, France. The ambitious maca project is a long term engagement for Naturex and demonstrates its commitment to responsible corporate citizenship and to sustainable development. Naturex owes its strength to an expert and dynamic team of men and women inspired by the same spirit of solidarity. The Naturex Foundation supports in particular education, medicine, environment and basic necessities, outside of any economic interest.

Maca has received a great deal of media, in magazines, on radio, and as the subject of various TV documentaries. Maca is a highly important plant to the people of the central highlands in Peru. We created a special page called Maca in the Media that lists most of our maca stories and has direct links to each of them.

“At Naturex we believe in giving back to the communities where we do business. And we’re doing that in Peru.” - Antoine Dauby, Naturex, The New York Times

“People in the U.S. are more cranked up on pharmaceutical drugs than any other culture in the world today. I want people using safer medicine. And that means plant medicine.” – Chris Kilham, New York Times

On a Remote Path to Cures

The New York Times, by Andrew Downie, Jan 2008

NINACACA, Peru — High in the Peruvian Andes, a shaman rubs a fluffy white rabbit all over Chris Kilham’s body, murmuring in Quechua, the language of these barren plains. Then she slits the animal’s throat and lets the blood run into a tiny grave. To Mr. Kilham, the offering — an appeal to the gods for a bountiful harvest of maca, a local tuber — is just another day at the office.

“Part David Attenborough, part Indiana Jones, Mr. Kilham, an ethnobotanist from Massachusetts… scoured remote jungles and highlands for three decades for plants, oils and extracts that can heal.” - The New York Times