The doTerra essential oil company has a long-standing reputation for sourcing essential oils from their native regions and countries, whose soil structure and climate allow for optimal potency in the finished product. However, many people don’t know about the far-reaching effects of doTerra’s policy of “co-impact sourcing,” whose goal is to develop long-term, mutually beneficial supplier partnerships while creating sustainable jobs and providing reliable income in underdeveloped areas. Through this initiative, doTerra sets the precedent for other essential oil companies by impacting the communities that grow and harvest the aromatic plants well beyond the standard compensation.

Most recently, doTerra has completed Esseterre, a distillery in the Dobrich area of Bulgaria, with a unique on-site laboratory and a lounge where farmers can relax while their crops are being distilled. For many years, distilleries were managed by brokers who decided both how much and when the farmers would be paid—some weren’t paid for months or years, until the brokers sold the resulting oil from the crops, says Tim Valentiner, doTerra’s director of strategic sourcing.

Due to its state-of-the-art distillation equipment, doTerra is able to produce a higher yield for the farmer, Valentiner says, and because the distillery is exclusive to doTerra, farmers receive their pay immediately or within days. “We are also enabled to reward bonuses to farmers that are doing the best work and growing plants that result in the highest quality oil,” he says. “No other distillery in Bulgaria has this capability or priority like we do.” 

Esseterre currently focuses on the production of lavender and melissa essential oils, but it will add numerous additional oils in the future, he says.

For more information, contact Mae McDonnell of 8th Element Wellness at 850-225-4031 or [email protected].