SAN JUAN DE LA MAGUANA, Dom. Rep.- The consumption of moringa (also libertad) has reached fever pitch in this city, so much so that the tree’s plantations in the area have been all but decimated, forcing its vendors to desiccate and store them as a precaution.

 As prices of moringa leaves, pods, nuts, husks and wood jump in keeping with the numbers of its consumers, fierce competition among sellers has been the result, with trees in low lying areas cut down to the very trunks to use not only the leaves, but the pods and wood of the "miracle tree."

On a tour along the roads linking the city with Las Matas de Farfan, Juan de Herrera and Bohechío, the few plants still standing had already been subjected to the axe, left only with stumps only three to four inches thick.

 An increasing number of people from all walks of life who are consuming moringa potions, some because they say "it feels great, I sleep better, I’ve not been affected by flu for some time,” while some feel sure it’s "finally, for many, the tree will be replacing conventional medicine."