6 min read
2017-07-25
Journey to Southern India
Written By: Angela Gembrin
What you will find below is part of a recent report from two members of our European staff, Lorenzo Bonaventura and Camilla Previato. India is of special significance to both of them as they have spent almost ten years in that country near Varanasi working for an NGO at an orphanage. This experience not only left them fluent in the national language, but has given them the necessary cultural experience that has allowed them to successfully navigate the often difficult business environment in India. We are very fortunate at Eden Botanicals to have the benefit of their unusual set of skills that allows us to locate the kind of unique and high quality oils that our customers expect. We have corrected a bit of the translation, but what follows is mostly in their own words:
We began our journey in one of Tamil Nadu’s major cities with a population of more than two million people. In spite of fast-growing industrial activity, only a few kilometers from the city center the rural lifestyle of the villages takes over, and we found ourselves being swept into the ancient reality of rural India.
First stop: the amazing flower bazaar! This crowded and very colorful market is still the vibrant heart of the flower business. The market attracts individual buyers as well as businesses looking for floral raw material. The larger companies have their own agents permanently checking the pulse of the market and the fluctuation of the raw material prices.
Many women look for simple garlands to use as exquisitely scented decoration for their hair. More elaborate garlands are used for special events like marriages or religious festivals. In beautifully woven baskets are an endless display of Tuberose, Tagetes, Jasmine, Davana, Lotus and Rose blossoms.
The first plantations we visited were growing the flower with the most seductive, sensual and intoxicating aroma: the pure white Jasmine. There are hundreds of different varieties of Jasmine but the most important flowers for the fragrance industry are the grandiflorum (Jasmine Absolute, India) and the sambac (Jasmine Sambac Absolute) species. In the region we visited, the blossoming of the sambac starts in March-April with a peak in May-June. We were lucky enough to find a few flowers left. The grandiflorum starts blossoming in June and continues until December.
Unlike the Jasminum grandiflorum, which opens its petals at dawn, Jasminum sambac flowers open in the evening, around 6 to 8pm. Grandiflorum is very sensitive: it needs to be processed within two or three hours, while the sambac can be picked in the morning and then transferred to the company premises by evening. There, the flowers begin to blossom and, at around 10pm, can be processed. So, the grandiflorum blooms on the plant while the Sambac, after being picked up in the morning, blooms in the night time on the floor. Approximately 8,000 carefully hand-picked blossoms are required to produce 1 gram (about 1 ml) of Jasmine absolute!
Here you can see a stainless steel alembic filled with Jasminum grandiflorum flowers ready to be washed with solvent for extraction.
We were filled with feelings of wonder and respect, when we considered the amount of flowers picked one by one by hand for creating these beautiful concretes. We could see how our supplier strictly follows the natural rhythms of the seasons to harvest and cut the plantations in order to keep them healthy. For the Grandiflorum a large pruning at the right time is fundamental to guarantee a good crop every year. Many farmers often delay the pruning if the plants keep giving flowers but this weakens the plants and spoils the quality.
We were also able to witness the entire process of Tuberose extraction: from the concrete to the absolute. With patience and an painstaking attention to detail, a few women were carefully following the whole process step by step. Visiting different companies, we were pleased to see how our supplier created a satisfactory working environment taking into account the workers’ needs, particularly those with family responsibilities. Sadly, kindness and respect are not so common in most of the local working environments and for us that is definitely an added value to our final product!
According to their different characteristics every flower requires a different kind of treatment. For example, Frangipani flowers can last for 12 hours after being harvested without getting spoiled. It has been just wonderful walking among the Jasmine plantations, surrounded by Frangipani trees!
After Tamil Nadu, we decided to move on to Kerala by car. While the main focus of our visit to Tamil Nadu was on flowers, here spices are more important. The Spice Board[1] is located in Kerala and it is the official mediator for all spice trading in India. So, whoever distills, processes or trades Cardamom, Pepper, Ginger, Nutmeg, Turmeric, Clove, Vanilla and Cinnamon must get their raw material from the southern states of India, mainly from Kerala.
We have been so lucky to travel for days in the hills of this lush Indian state, sharing our path with the elephants who were looking for a drinking spot along the river during their annual migration.
Spending a night in an organic Cardamom plantation woken up by the chirping of exotic birds was absolutely magical!
Cardamom is truly a fascinating plant and the Indian Cardamom Research Institute (ICRI)2 has been based in Kerala since 1978. Cardamom plantations are very dense with only small narrow roads through the middle that allow visitors to walk inside. The stem of the plant is quite long, and is generally between 2 and 4 meters. There are brilliant green leaves in the upper part of the plant while the precious fruits appear on the ground close to the roots. Its flowers are like small white orchids with purple and rose stripes. We chose to visit an organic plantation that is reestablishing the ancient and wise use of neem leaves that are macerated into a natural pesticide.
The tropical humid weather of the hills is the perfect environment for Vanilla, Pepper and Clove and other wonderful plants that were waiting for us back on the plains.
To help our bodies handle the fatigue of the trip, we drank a cup of reinvigorating Tulsi tea. Wonderful! Among all the Indian aromatics, Ocimum sanctum, also commonly known as Tulsi, Tulasi or Holy Basil, is one of the most revered. In fact, this plant is so intermingled with the Indian culture that it has become central to Indian spirituality, which includes all of Nature in the range of the sacred. It is widely used and cultivated in India not only for religious reasons but also for its culinary uses. It is very common in India to find a Tulsi plant in the backyard or in a pot on the balcony as we could see in all of our friend’s homes that we visited. It is the obvious guest of honor in every Indian garden. We are very excited to supply a Tulsi Essential Oil at last so that our customers can enjoy this quintessential Indian botanical.
The colors and the aroma of Nature are so deliciously combined in the Indian culinary art as we could appreciate when tasting delightful meals laid out on traditional banana leaves: alchemy is present in the distillation room as well as the kitchen.
After Tulsi, another “friend” was there to help us with a refreshing break from the heat: the Nutmeg tree. The warm and spicy-sweet scent of Nutmeg Essential Oil is fantastic, but walking through a grove of living, breathing Nutmeg trees is another type of experience entirely. It stands out for its height and luxuriant foliage. In a nutmeg plantation on hot summer days farmers, villagers and animals can find refuge in the refreshing shade of the trees. These trees don’t require any specific treatment or pesticide as they are quite hardy and are not easily attacked by diseases or insects.
Not a native to India, Nutmeg has travelled all the way from the Maluku islands (eastern part of Indonesia) to the coast of Malabar (Kerala) becoming one of the most important spices in the Indian market. The Nutmeg seed is wrapped in a red aril called mace. The fruit has a yellow color. When it is ripe it falls from the tree and breaks into two halves, revealing its pearl: the Nutmeg. Steam distillation of the external membrane is used to make Mace essential oil while for Nutmeg essential oil the whole seed is processed. Mace can decay rapidly once it comes into contact with the ground and may be lost completely if not collected in time. The workers don’t climb the trees for the harvest, instead they collect the fallen fruits on the ground or shake the branches of the tree with a long stick. The fruit pulp can also be used for making jam and is present in some Ayurvedic medicine recipes.
We rested for some time under the foliage of a beautiful Nutmeg tree. At the end of our journey, after being surrounded by the lush tropical vegetation of Clove trees, Pepper vines, and Cardamom plants we sensed how deeply the culture and daily life of Kerala is entwined with the aromatic world of spices. From the jungle to the crowded and busy streets of the town, spices are ever-present to entice us with colors, taste and aromas!
Footnotes
1 “Spices Board (Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India) is the flagship organization for the development and worldwide promotion of Indian spices. The Board is an international link between the Indian exporters and the importers abroad. The Board has been spearheading activities for excellence of Indian spices, involving every segment of the industry.”
2 Ibid.
