Arbor Oils of Africa
Arbor Oils of Africa is a Kenyan producer of certified organic frankincense & myrrh essential oils. They engage in the entire production value chain: from sourcing raw ingredients to distilling the essential oils. The collection operation has been certified organic since 2007 and will be FairWild certified in 2022. This means that the products, from wild harvest collection are sustainably sourced, Fair Trade, traceable and free from contamination.
Arbor Oils of Africa’s essential oils
Based in Naro Moru, Kenya, Arbor Oils of Africa specializes in the distillation of frankincense and myrrh essential oils from wild harvested resins from the semi-desert areas of northern Kenya. This wild area is the habitat of the spiny myrrh and frankincense trees which exude aromatic resins. The resins are not tapped but exude naturally, as a result of insect larval activity. The resins are brought to the production site on the slopes of Mount Kenya and steam distilled to extract the essential oils. They are stored in glass bottles to mature and packed in steel drums ready for export.
They offer:
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Frankincense neglecta essential oil from the resin of Boswelia neglecta, a tree growing in the semi deserts of northern Kenya.
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Myrrh oils from Commiphora kataf, Commiphora kua and Commiphora myrrha, trees growing in the semi deserts of northern Kenya.
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Cape chestnut oil or yangu oil from the seeds of Calodendrum capense, a forest tree that grows on the East African mountain slopes.
Arbor oils of Africa can guarantee traceability and authenticity for the different essential oils, as they have direct links with the sources of resin harvesting.
Arbor Oils of Africa’s social and environmental impacts
Arbor Oils of Africa creates many positive environmental and social impacts within their community of collectors. Besides providing pastoralists in harsh, semi-deserted areas with an alternative income from the sustainable wild harvest, they fund various social projects from their premium fund. For example, in 2021, they repaired a solar water pump borehole in a remote collection area and they purchased a motorbike so that the collectors don’t have to walk long distances to bring the resins to the purchase centre.
Their environmental efforts include organic production and training of the collectors not to damage the trees in any way when harvesting resins.
