Crocodile skin and meat are sought-after products but the reptile's fat is gaining in desirability for its medicinal properties.
Some farmers and businessmen are marketing the reptile's oil in skin cream or as a balm that can "help with serious skin infections like eczema and psoriasis".
There is also a serum that allegedly smoothes away wrinkles and has anti-ageing properties and sells for R1 500 a small bottle.
The oil is also promoted as a remedy for dogs with mange but scientists remain sceptical.
The growing interest in the medicinal use of crocodiles began after researchers in America and Australia claimed that crocodiles had strong antibiotic properties in their blood that helped them recover after savage fights without becoming infected - even though they swam in swamps teeming with microbes that caused all kinds of diseases. A documentary about this research ran on CNN and BBC.
John Sweet, a British businessman who has settled in Port Elizabeth, saw an opportunity.
He bought some croc fat, which usually gets dumped, from farmers in Limpopo. There is only about 600g of fat per crocodile.
He said he then refined the oil and mixed it with beeswax to preserve it.
"We have testimonials from users who say the oil has helped their skin problems. It is a natural remedy and we make no claims."
The company and its products are registered under the name Repcillin. He said in some countries the oil had been used as a natural remedy for centuries. The Aborigines used it as a remedy and Cleopatra used it as part of her beauty regime.
The oil had been analysed by the SABS and the results showed it was rich in omega 3, 6 and 9 which was known to have beneficial properties for the body and skin.
He said he had sold 25 000 tubs in the past three years, and last week received 1 000 orders.
"Its success has been based on word-of-mouth and it can be purchased in various countries around the world."
But some researchers were sceptical and hesitant to endorse any remedies.
Gill Diamond, a scientist at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, said funding was minimal and the research did not go far.
"While I am sure crocodiles, like all species examined to date, have antimicrobial peptides like the ones I study in mammals, very little work has been done on them. So nothing has really been published about it.
"However, even if they had discovered antimicrobial peptides in crocodiles, getting these peptides into therapies has been next to impossible.
"So should the public be wary?" asked Diamond.
"The answer is, of course. I found a website that kept moving as it was shut down, which claimed to sell an antibiotic that would cure practically anything and was supposedly based on my research on crocodiles.
"Never mind that we never published our findings (because there is not enough data). Just word in the press was enough for them to sell something without any data to back up their claims."
Professor Marina Rautenbach from the department of biochemistry at the University of Stellenbosch said only a few people in South Africa had worked on the antimicrobial properties of living organisms, and no one she knew had done in-depth medicinal research on crocodiles or other reptiles.
"This is actually a small research field worldwide with Diamond being one of the few people who has worked on reptiles. I am not sure which compounds will be found in the fat of crocodiles, except fats and breakdown products from contaminating crocodile blood. Blood will contain some antibiotic activity, but it is not stable.
"In my opinion, anything on the market from reptiles claiming to have medicinal properties must be viewed with suspicion, as research data is limited."