11.09.2025 14:00
Abdullah Fidanten, a construction master from Diyarbakır, learned from documentaries he watched 10 years ago that scorpion venom was used in the field of health in ancient times. Having been interested in scorpions and snakes since childhood, the middle school graduate Fidanten established a facility by spending 9 million lira. His goal is to make Turkey competitive with Europe by collecting scorpion venom, for which tens of thousands of dollars are paid per gram.
Abdullah Fidanten, a 40-year-old resident of the Lice district of Diyarbakır, developed an interest in dangerous animals at a young age. While his peers were interested in animals like pigeons, horses, and rabbits, Fidanten spent his childhood among snakes and scorpions. After finishing middle school, he ended his education and started working in construction. During this time, he did not give up on wildlife, continuing to watch dangerous animals in documentaries and researching online.
STARTED 1.5 YEARS AGO, REACHED 3,000 SCORPIONS In early 2024, Fidanten learned from a documentary that scorpion venom was used as a remedy for diseases in ancient times, and he shifted his entire focus to this. He decided to establish a facility to produce scorpion venom, taking a break from his job and scanning all the archives he could find related to scorpion venom and production. Spending approximately 9 million lira on a facility on his own land in the Lice district, Fidanten collected 300 scorpions. Taking care of his scorpions as if they were his children and being with them all day, Fidanten finally began to reap the rewards of his efforts. He increased his scorpion count from 300 to 3,000 and stores the venom he obtains at minus 200 degrees. So far, Fidanten has managed to collect 100 grams of scorpion venom, which sells for 12,000 dollars per gram in the market. His goal is to collect 2 liters of venom monthly and to make Turkey competitive with Europe in this field.
1 GRAM IS WORTH TENS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS In statements to İhlas News Agency (IHA), Fidanten, the owner of Venora Pharmaceutical Industry Agriculture, Food, Animal Husbandry, R&D Construction, Import and Export Limited Company, said that he generally dealt with construction work and interior decoration, and that he started this business inspired by a documentary 10 years ago. Fidanten stated, "Previously, I had an interest in wild animals in our region; I was always curious about animals like snakes and scorpions. I learned from a documentary made in Egypt that it was used as a remedy for medicinal purposes. Then I did some research and saw that its roots go back even further. My curiosity led me to conduct research. When I learned that it was used for cancer and tumor-like diseases in Cuba, my curiosity grew even more. After that, I made an initiative. Necessary permits were obtained from both the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock and the Ministry of Health. We opened our facility in 2024," he said.
ESTABLISHED A FACILITY FOR 9 MILLION LIRA Fidanten noted that when they first started, they obtained scorpions through procurement and donation from those kept in laboratories or facilities in Turkey, stating, "We acquired around 300-400 scorpions. In about 1.5 years, with the birth of offspring, we currently have nearly 3,000 scorpions. Periodic monthly milking is done. The general cost of land and building construction, along with the scorpions, was approximately 9 million lira. With this capacity, when we reach the ability to raise 50,000 scorpions in the future, we will be able to provide employment for more than 100 people just in the farm area. When we reach full capacity, we will obtain about 2 liters of venom and also provide on-site employment for more than 100 people. We store this venom at minus 200 degrees in nitrogen tanks," he explained.
12 MILLION DOLLARS PER LITER Fidanten emphasized that they obtain 0.2 milligrams of venom from a scorpion monthly, stating, "To obtain 1 gram, we milk about 300-350 scorpions. The average market value for this in Turkey is approximately 12,000 dollars. Per liter, it can be around 10-12 million dollars. We know that in Europe or other countries, the price per gram is about 30-40 thousand dollars. When differentiated in Europe, it corresponds to about 90-100 million dollars per liter. With the agreements we will make, it will be a great source of happiness for us to market high value-added products to the world and ensure foreign currency inflow. We are currently in talks with pharmaceutical companies in countries like Switzerland, Germany, and the Netherlands. In fact, we are at the stage of making an agreement soon. Right now, I can obtain between 6-10 grams of venom monthly. We have about 100 grams of venom, which we store with 200-degree cold nitrogen. It is a highly populous creature. It can give birth to between 20-120 offspring at a time. We have the chance to increase this number to between 10,000-20,000 within a year or two. We can keep 50,000 scorpions in our facility, and we have done it that way. With the agreements we will make, we will have the potential to extract 100-200 grams of venom monthly," he said.
SCORPION VENOM IS A FAVORITE IN DEFENSE AND PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRIES Fidanten noted that in their research, they found that scorpion venom is used in many areas, and he continued:
"Especially in the health sector, it is used in cancer tumor treatment. It is used as a raw material for painkillers and in cosmetic and botox products. It also has strategic importance for the defense industry. There are studies related to these. Our biggest effort is to process it in a way that benefits our country and our people, rather than exporting it as raw material, and to turn it into a brand that we can market to the world. Ministries need to take this issue into their hands and make it a state policy. I want to emphasize that we can contribute to this. We are calling on our government to support us as much as they can; if they take the initiative, it will be advantageous for both our country and us. This will provide significant contributions to the defense industry and the health sector. There are many patients coming to our country from abroad for health reasons. We call on our government to support us."