By Kim Brookes, Perfino
You get what you pay for when you buy essential oils, as you do with most things in life. Rose Otto, otherwise known as Rose essential oil, retails at around £48 for 2.5ml (half a teaspoon). Why is it so expensive? Well, consider how it is made. It takes around 10,000 roses to produce 5ml of this precious oil or, put another way, 5 dozen roses to produce a single drop.
Rose essential oil is extracted through steam distillation. The harvesting of flowers is traditionally done by hand in the morning before sunrise. Large stills are filled with the roses and water. The still is then fired for an hour or so. The vapourised water and rose oil leaves the still, enters a condensing apparatus, and is then collected in a flask. This yields a very concentrated oil. The water which condenses with the oil is then drained off and distilled again. The two collections, once combined, make the final rose essence, or Rose Otto essential oil.
An Absolute, which again you may be familiar with as a Rose oil, is traditionally made using the enfleurage method. Enfleurage is a very old technique and works on the simple principle that animal fat, or beeswax, dissolves essential oils and thereby absorbs their aromas. The flowers, again hand-picked, are placed between layers of the fat or beeswax, repeatedly, over several days, until the fat becomes saturated with flower oil, producing a “pomade”. To extract the Absolute the fat or wax is then dissolved in alcohol.
This is the most labour intensive, and time-consuming way to make an Absolute but it is the only way possible for some of nature’s most delicate flowers, and so the price for the real thing stays high.
The price of Rose Absolute can come down even further when carbon dioxide extraction is used. In this method the CO2 is put under high pressure. This turns it into a liquid which combines with the plant matter and acts as a solvent extracting the oils or resin. It operates at lower temperatures with no toxins, and is therefore the cleaner way of producing essential oil. When the CO2 is brought back to natural pressure it returns to its natural state leaving the resulting pure oil.
Any Rose oil should be respected as the process, whichever one it has been through, produces a very precious oil and one that should command a high price. The best essential oils are grown sustainably, imported by wholesalers who regularly inspect not only the growing methods but also the work practices of the farmers or growers and have a historical and regular relationship with the growers.
Roses are grown annually and can be repeatedly harvested, but some plants are less fruitful, more difficult to harvest, and it’s critical that they are protected to ensure sustainability of the species. One such plant is Frankincense.
Frankincense has been used for many years as incense and as a symbol of holiness as it’s so wonderfully fragrant when burned. The oil is derived from the resin of the Boswellia tree, which typically grows in the dry, mountainous regions of India, Africa and the Middle East, often in the most hard-to-get-to places. It takes 8 to 10 years before the tree, when tapped, yields the streaks of resin, called tears. Wild harvested by making perforations into the bark of the trunk, the tears are collected and then steam distilled to produce the essential oil.
Experts say that the tree should be cut no more than 12 times a year to keep them healthy. When cut the resin leaks out and much like a scab protects the tree from infection so the wound can heal, but if this happens too much, and the healing resin is removed, the tree will ultimately suffer and die. In the mountain regions of countries like Somalia this is difficult to monitor as the trees grow in areas with harsh climates, often plagued by poverty and conflict, and may be the only source of income for local people.
It goes without saying that anyone sourcing Frankincense should be absolutely clear that it is being sourced sustainably.
A similar dilemma exists for Rosewood, the world’s most trafficked item, even beating ivory to this unenviable title.
In the case of Rosewood CITES has put restrictions on the trade of all 300 species, in an attempt to clamp down on illegal logging of this timber. Having plundered the forests of Southeast Asia to virtual extinction traffickers have turned to West Africa and Central America. The good news is that reputable suppliers of this essential oil will always sell it with a CITES certificate so you can trace the origin of the Rosewood oil you are using and be sure it is grown and harvested sustainably.
The situation is similar for Sandalwood, a vulnerable species, but one that is prized in perfumery for its heartwood and roots. As a result of uncontrolled harvesting in India where it is highly valued for its use in perfumes, soaps, incense, cosmetics and medicines it is increasingly being grown under governmental protection. India has imposed an export ban on Sandalwood and instigated conservation measures to protect this species in their country. Sandalwood is now mainly grown sustainably in plantations in Australia, so again you need to be sure where your Sandalwood oil is being sourced.
Happily, the horror stories of man abusing nature are counterbalanced by the occasional success story, where plants have been grown sustainably and in a controlled fashion, and man has applied his ingenuity for good. Vetiver is one such success story.
Vetiver is a tall grass and the root structure can grow to a depth of 20 feet, which makes it fantastic at preventing soil erosion and promoting soil conservation. It is grown all over the world for a multiplicity of uses from basket weaving to Ayurvedic medicine, and as it can be planted and harvested in a two-year cycle, is a very sustainable product and one that provides tremendous support to agriculture practices and earnings around the world.
In Haiti Vetiver is grown as a cash crop for the essential oils found in the roots, produced through steam distillation after much washing and drying to remove impurities and enhance the natural oil production. If you haven’t smelt it, I would encourage you to do so.
So, it’s a bit of a mixed bag when it comes to essential oils and their sustainability. Be sure you check the provenance of your oils, trust who you are buying from, and above all, use these precious oils with the respect they deserve.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kim Brookes is the founder of Perfino, an innovative natural scent jewellery brand. Perfino combines expertly blended, 100% natural, pure essential oils with exquisite jewellery so you can wear scent all day long without any chemicals touching your skin. The solid recycled silver and 18ct gold vermeil, artisan designed pendant comes with six lava stones and 10ml of carefully blended natural essential oils – all sourced from sustainable growers. One drop of oil on the stone in the pendant will give you a delicate fragrance that can last for days.
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