Bush tea may soon find a place on more than just the breakfast table.

At a recent gathering of regional poultry experts, one local animal nutritionist made a case for why traditional Caribbean herbs like cerasee and aloe vera could help farmers reduce their dependence on antibiotics, while opening doors for innovation and income in animal health.

Speaking at the Caribbean Poultry Association’s technical symposium in Kingston, Dr Tanika O’Connor Denny used the platform to call on farmers, researchers and agribusiness leaders to take a closer look at the healing properties of familiar plants in poultry rearing.

“When I was a child, summertime meant getting a washout before going back to school. Some bitters in the morning, and mommy would say, ‘Go outside and pick some cerasee.’ Jamaicans love their bush tea,” she said.

“I don’t know if the rest of the Caribbean is like that, but what we didn’t realise is that mommy and grandma knew something. The phenols and tannins in those bush teas were actually good for you,” O’Connor Denny added.

Her remarks came during a broader discussion about antibiotic-free poultry production, a growing global trend driven by concerns about antibiotic resistance and consumer demand for more “natural” meat. While the shift is already well underway in countries like the United States and parts of Europe — and even here in Jamaica, where the two largest producers, Jamaica Broilers and Caribbean Broilers, have adopted antibiotic-free systems — O’Connor Denny warned that the Caribbean still faces unique hurdles.

“It’s expensive. It’s complex. And it requires a complete mindset shift,” she said.

Without antibiotics, poultry farmers need reliable alternatives to manage disease and maintain flock health. That’s where phytogenics — plant-based compounds with natural health-boosting properties — come in. Herbs and spices like oregano, thyme, and turmeric are already being used in commercial feed in other parts of the world. But these additives are often imported and costly.

According to O’Connor Denny, the Caribbean could have home-grown options hiding in plain sight.

“I challenge all of the Caribbean people here. We’re purchasing phenols from elsewhere but let’s start looking at our local bush tea and see if we can develop something region-specific. There’s money to be made in that,” she said.

O’Connor Denny shared anecdotes from her work with local farmers who are already experimenting with traditional remedies. One farmer reported using aloe vera in drinking water and seeing rapid weight gain in her broiler chickens.

“Because of the rise of antibiotic-free production, people started saying, ‘Hey, let’s take a look at these local herbs, let’s see what we can do with them.’ That’s what we mean when we talk about phenols. They help increase the diversity of gut microbiota, have antiviral and antioxidant properties, and even offer some growth-promoting benefits,” the animal nutritionist explained.

“I remember a farmer called me one day and said, ‘Miss, I got four-pound birds in just four weeks!’ I asked, ‘How did you manage that?’ She said, ‘I just cut up some aloe vera and put it in their water.’ And I thought — yes, that makes sense. Aloe vera has anti-inflammatory properties, so it helps support gut health,” she continued.

While encouraging, these examples remain unproven. O’Connor Denny is now calling for universities and research institutions across the region to step up and validate what she believes could be a game changer for small and medium-sized farms.

That’s no small thing in a region where the cost and availability of farm inputs are constant concerns. Importing specialty feed products can be both slow and expensive. In some cases, O’Connor Denny said that Caribbean farmers wait up to 10 weeks for delivery or pay upwards of US$10,000 per metric tonne to bring in additives by air freight.

“The economics just don’t work for most farmers,” she said. “But if we can produce viable alternatives here, using local herbs, that changes the game entirely.”

She also noted that moving away from antibiotics is not just about regulation or marketing but that it also promotes resilience.

The overuse of antibiotics in agriculture has been linked to the rise of drug-resistant bacteria, a global public health threat. Finding safe and effective ways to reduce antibiotic use in animals without compromising food safety or farm income is now seen as a major priority.

Still, it won’t happen overnight. O’Connor Denny acknowledged that successful antibiotic-free production requires far more than just swapping out medication for herbs. It involves better feed management, cleaner water systems, improved farm hygiene, and close monitoring of animal health.

“You have to retrain the farmers — because for years, antibiotics were covering all sorts of management issues. That’s just how it was done. Some of them are still doing things the way their grandfathers did, but if we’re serious about antibiotic-free production, retraining has to come first,” she said.