Elle Macpherson has angered animal rights groups after admitting she uses illegal powdered rhinoceros horn as a beauty treatment. The 47-year-old supermodel, known as The Body, revealed her anti-aging secret on Twitter earlier this week. She praised the ancient Chinese medicine during an online interview with British newspaper The Sunday Times.

Elle Macpherson Sparks Animal Rights Outrage.

“Put it this way, it works for me," she wrote. "It tastes a little bit like crushed bone and fungus in a capsule. It does the job, though.”

Rhinos are an endangered species, and trade in any of their parts has been banned by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) since 1977. Elle’s admission has infuriated animal rights groups worldwide.

"The Humane Society International condemns the poaching of rhinos, particularly for their use in beauty products, and Ms. Macpherson's actions are reprehensible," Nicola Beynon of the Humane Society International told the Toronto Sun.

The International Fund for Animal Welfare is also outraged. The group is particularly worried that trade in the illegal horn will increase if someone like Elle endorses it.

"There is no excuse for using any endangered animal products," spokeswoman Erica Martin told SkyNews. "First and foremost, selling rhino products is illegal and in breach of CITES and secondly, four out of five species of rhino are literally on the brink of extinction.

“Elle has been a successful businesswoman with a high public profile for decades, and people do listen to what she says."

Elle’s revelation comes just 12 months after she boycotted a top London restaurant for serving endangered bluefin tuna.

Elle has since apologized for her comments, insisting she would never knowingly do anything to harm endangered species.

“She regrets any distress or offense that her banter with an interviewer might have caused,” Elle’s spokeswoman told News Limited. “She never knowingly consumed or encouraged the use or consumption of any products which contain material derived from endangered species.”

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