Choose a link below to go to our FairTrade pages:
We source our raw
materials from a range of different countries. In each case, we
are committed to sourcing the best quality raw
materials from suppliers who operate ethically. To find out more
about the origin of some of our raw materials please read on...
NOTE: For detailed information about specific raw materials please
visit our Natural
Skin Care Library as well as our raw
materials fact page.
"You've got a lovely friendly company,
and your newsletter is always eagerly anticipated! I like the
high quality of the goods you sell."
E. Coral Smith
|
Albania
We have rediscovered this country with its ancestral tradition of the
collection of wild aromatic plants, which have for some time been labeled
as Organic Wild Sage officinale. With their constant quality and regular
quantity as well as the large number of collectors we are able to offer
you quality products and reduce the risk of shortages.
Austria
The Organic Oil of Pinus Pumilionis (pin de montanes), obtained from
the steam distillation of the needles of this pine are the main constituents
of this oil. It smells agreeably sweet, with balsamic, almost fruity
fragrance. This essential oil belongs to the Swiss Pharmaceutical Tradition
and is used with great success.
 Order
Pine Austria Organic Oil
Madagascar
The harvesting of the Clove flower buds on the East Coast of Madagascar
is performed during October and November. Each mature tree gives between
6 and 10 Kg's of heads per year. The flowers are dried for several days
in the sun with the colour of the flowers changing from a yellowy red
colour through light brown to a rich dark mahogany.
Most cloves are sold to herbalists or in grocer's shops and most Clove
essential oil is produced from the cloves rejected for sale by these
consumers. So that our essential oil is of optimum quality, from both
the point of view of its aroma and also from its analytical quality,
we distil the flowers as soon as possible after they are dried and we
do not allow them to be subject to the normal triage (except in years
of poor harvests which happens every three years).
When we distil the freshly dried whole Cloves, usually in December or
January, we produce an essential oil richer in Acetate of Eugenyle, with
a lower level of Beta Caryophyllene and a level of Eugenol of around
80%. The less fresh the cloves that are distilled, the higher the level
of Caryophyllene rises, to between 12% and 15%. The longer they are distilled
for, the more oil is produced, but as a downside, the olfactory quality
is diminished due to the increased level of Eugenol present. Clove Essential
Oil has a long shelf life.
The organic clove harvest starts in October but we fear a rise in the
market price due to a strong demand from Indonesia. The quality, however,
is extremely good with a Eugenyle Acetate content of 10 - 12% in the
top grade 'Extra Organic Oil'. The safeguards we have put in place will
assure enough supply to meet your needs right up until next year's harvest.
Order
Clove Oil (Organic)
India
Organic Mint Project in Uttar Pradesh, India
To read about other FairTrade projects supported by Aromantic click
here.
In early 2003, our suppliers set out to establish an organic mint project
in India on the basis of the growing demand for certified organic mint
oils. To meet their immediate needs, they worked alongside their Indian
agent to find a mint oil operation which was already practicing organic
farming methods - but was not yet certified organic. Within a couple
of months, they found a suitable existing operation which, much to their
luck, could be certified organic immediately.
This operation is in Utter Pradesh - a popular mint production area
- where a group of small-scale rural growers share two common distillation
units. Here the oil of 42 small-scale local farmers (some with blocks
as small as 2 hectares) is produced. Combined, the farmers have a total
area of almost 185 hectares. Most of the 42 growers are related so it
has developed very much into a large family co-op where the mint production
directly supports around 220 people.
This year, they extended this project by certifying another small-scale
growers group some 50 kilometres away from their first co-op. They too
have two communal distillation units which they share amongst them. This
co-op comprises 48 growers - bringing the total number of growers in
the entire extended mint project to 90, and people supported from the
entire project to around 450. Both groups produce their mint crops without
the use of chemicals and have been using the same production methods
for the last twenty years.
Plant nutrition comes from a regime of mulching spent leaf matter after
distillation - coupled with animal waste and the planting of a legume
crop in the off season. In the wet season, the farmers also receive beneficial
alluvial flooding, which deposits silt to their fields. Economics and
remoteness of their land made the farmers develop clever organic production
methods.
Our suppliers commissioned the certification of these lands - educating
the farmers on the criteria required for certification. They lined up
SKAL (a Dutch certifier) to handle the farm certification each year.
This involves random samples taken from the soil, leaf and oil to test
for traces of chemicals. These tests are performed by an independent
laboratory in the Netherlands - two such tests performed since the land
has been certified - have both delivered a clear result.
These tests are a requirement of the USDA (NOP) certification which
this mint project has also been awarded.
The total mint production is broken down (roughly) into the following
mint varieties:
- 70% Mentha piperita (peppermint)
- 20% Mentha arvensis (corn mint)
- 10% Mentha spicata (spearmint)
Last year, our supplier purchased about 65% of the initial co-op's total
production - with the balance being sold to existing Indian traders.
Their goal this year is to purchase close to 100% of the farmers production.
In total the farmers will produce around 24 tonnes of certified organic
mint oil per annum - depending on the length of the season.
Order
Peppermint Organic Oil
FairTrade and Bio-dynamic project in India…
To read about other FairTrade projects supported by Aromantic click here.
We are happy to introduce you to a project started by our friend Sheila
Gray. Sheila is an English aromatherapist who became our co-operation
partner in France. Aromantic will trade with this Eco-Fair Trade project
to help support the small independent farmers. The quantities they supply
are presently too small for them to afford to qualify for organic status.
(Their first year’s crop amounted to only 2 litres of Jasmine.)
However we know that their growing methods are bio-dynamic which is
of an even higher standard. The result is very high quality essential
oils and we are very happy with the first batch of Jasmine absolute and
Jasmine sambac which we have in stock. This is what Sheila has to say
about the project...
The Nilgiris are part of the Western Ghats – a range of mountains
which stretch for hundreds of miles roughly from the Bombay region right
down to the southern tip of India. The whole region and the Niligris
in particular, culminating at an altitude of 2600 metres is considered
as one of the main bio-diversity and ecological hot spots of the planet
with many rare endemic species of plants and animals.
Earthtrust is an Indian NGO which has been working in the region for
several years establishing health and education programmes, eco-restoration
and income generation in the local community through traditional medicine
and Biodynamic agriculture. We have been working in the region with Earthtrust
for several years now. Initially we worked with local women’s groups
to create a range of Biodynamic herbal cosmetics on a fair trade basis.
The project has now taken on a life and agenda of its own (as so often
happens in India!) and we now find ourselves designing innovative energy
efficient distillation units for our first production of Nilgiri Fair-trade
Biodynamic essential oils.
This has enabled us to envisage not only producing what may be considered
as the traditional Indian essential oils : Patchouli, Lemongrass, Tulsi
(Basil), Vetivert, Lemon verbena, Geranium etc but also to produce very
high quality Rosemary, Sweet marjoram, Cypress, Eucalyptus and Lavender
which have been growing in the Nilgiris for many years. This project
has enabled us to form partnerships with other local producers and family
companies working on similar ethical organic and Biodynamic schemes,
one of which produces an exceptional bio-dynamic Vanilla absolute
and another two exquisite organically grown Jasmine absolutes: Jasmine
grandiflorum and Jasmine sambac absolutes.
The essential oil of Jasmine is known as "absolute" as it is always
obtained by low temperature solvent extraction because the aromatic molecules
in the jasmine flowers are so fragile that they would be destroyed by
the heat generated during the distillation process used for the majority
of essential oils.
Our absolutes are produced by a small family company in the Nilgiri
mountains in Southern India who have built small but extremely efficient
aromatic extraction units using state of the art equipment and technology
to produce exceptionally high quality aromatic extracts. Because the
Jasmine production and harvest is such a delicate and expensive process,
much of the Jasmine cultivated in the world relies on pesticides to avoid
any insect damage to the crop.
However, here in the Nilgiris, this family realised over 25 years ago
that the best extracts could only be produced through organic growing
methods. They convinced the local farmers to not only continue the traditional
farming methods of fertilising their crops with goat and cow manure and
green manure crops, but also taught them the basics of organic farming
using foliar neem sprays to control a variety of pests and diseases.
This was a dramatic departure from the accepted methods of chemical plant
disease control and fertilisation imported from the west and encouraged
by the agro-chemical companies, and it was only through the strong bond
of trust between the farmers and the company that the farmers were willing
to try this new approach, resulting in the exquisite absolutes that they
produce today.
Because of the extremely delicate nature of the flowers, they are harvested
by hand each day starting at daybreak during the short season, paying
particular attention to handling so as to avoid any bruising which would
spoil the perfume in the finished product. It takes about 1 ton of flowers
to produce just over 1 kilo of absolute or put another way; more than
8 thousand blossoms to produce just 1gramme of Jasmine absolute. Now
as 1 gram of absolute contains about 25 drops, each drop contains the
equivalent of over 300 individually hand picked organic jasmine flowers,
so a little goes a very long way!!
It is a wonderful skincare ingredient, jasmine oil can be used particularly
for hot, dry, sensitive or mature skins. Its delicious aroma blends well
with many essential oils, giving a rounded, warm, sweet, tenacious note,
in particular with Rose, Sandalwood, all Citrus, Ylang ylang, Rosewood,
Juniper, Cypress, Vetivert, Geranium, Frankincense, to name but a few.
Despite its powerful and rich perfume, Jasmine tends to refresh rather
than oppress and is used in aromatherapy for its very effective anti
stress and antidepressant properties as well as an excellent aphrodisiac.
It has also been found useful for hormonal imbalance particularly for
menopausal symptoms and as a valuable uterine tonic. It is very helpful
for alleviating menstrual pain & cramps and as a massage oil to relieve
pain during childbirth. Indian women, especially in the south, weave
fresh jasmine garlands into their hair every morning and the plant is
used extensively in Ayurvedic & traditional medicine. The flowers
are considered to be cooling, calming & haemostatic with strong antibacterial
and antiviral action. The crushed flowers are used as a lactifuge for
nursing mothers; the leaves applied as a poultice for skin complaints
and ulcers. The flowers help in reducing fevers and the oil helps to
relieve sunstroke. Contact Sheila on Puretsimple@aol.com
Order
Bio-dynamic Jasmine Oil
Italy
To read about other FairTrade projects supported by Aromantic click here.
Bergamot (Citrus bergamia) - Fairly traded from Italy
Our Bergamot producers are a group of 15 small independent farmers,
each with Organic Certification. They are based in the Calabrian
region of Calabria Reggio, located at the extreme South of Italy along
the Ionian coast. The Association of Farmers was formed in 1996, by the
15 farmers who wanted to offer their produce directly to the industry
without intermediaries.
The entire process is done by the Association from planting, farming,
harvesting, processing, extraction and packing. The production of the
fruit is approx. 7 – 8 tons per year, producing approx. 3 ½ tons
of oil. The farmers offer both Bergapten and Bergapten-free. Both
have Organic Certification. The Bergapten-free Oil is processed
by a very old traditional method of steam pressure to remove the Bergapten.
Order
Bergamot Organic Oil
Morocco
Cultivation, harvesting and distillation is an ancient tradition in
many regions of Morocco. The organic label comes from harvesting the
wild plants and this guarantees that the botanical sites of these various
plants are respected and helps ensure their good regeneration. We can
say that this Organic Certification, in the Third World, helps sustain
long-term development and, even though demand is high, helps prevent
desertification.
We stock organic Orange Blossom Floral Water, organic and non-organic
Rose Floral Water, Geranium Water from Morocco.
Order Ingredients |
Select which of the above ingredients
you wish to order:
|
 Top
| 
Authentication
