Co-Impact Sourcing: Helichrysum

<<9>> I had sent samples to the doTERRA lab

<<13>> and I had focused on Juniper Berry, Lavender

<<16>> and other things.

<<17>> And just a small sample of Helichrysum cause,

<<19>> I didn't think, you know, it was going to matter.

<<22>> A week later I get an email

<<24>> saying that doTERRA loves the Helichrysum

<<28>> and they said can I produce 1500 kilos of Helichrysum?

<<32>> And I said, well I need this.

<<35>> So, we saw that this is where

<<37>> Helichrysum grows naturally,

<<40>> as well as most the herbs that we need.

<<44>> - I was here 2019 with you guys.

<<48>> I think all we had was over there.

<<51>> It's totally different today, they've built an entirely new,

<<55>> I think 10 stills over there.

<<57>> - So we have full-time, now we have 43 employees

<<61>> and then you calculate the farm workers

<<65>> and the distillery workers,

<<66>> we're almost at 200 now.

<<68>> - And then you said your farmer network was 600 for,

<<71>> that was for Laurel?

<<72>> - 600 for for Helichrysum and for Lavender.

<<76>> - And we hire locals here,

<<78>> but they've been working for us for a while now.

<<80>> So they've all sort of become family

<<82>> - And then if they're not our family

<<84>> they're the family of the other owner too.

<<87>> - Most of the times we help them plant.

<<90>> Most farmers can't afford to do all the tractor work

<<93>> and the seedlings.

<<96>> - Helichrysum alone is potentially their only source

<<98>> of income for the year for some small farmers.

<<101>> And we've literally had people coming in in a horse-

<<103>> drawn carriage bringing their load to the distillery.

<<107>> And I mean, it kind of gets you a little bit emotional

<<110>> because you see these people that literally were like bent

<<113>> over like breaking their backs to get this in the middle

<<115>> of the heat in the summer to bring their bags and to

<<118>> you know, get it weighed and get it put in.

<<120>> And we want to have more of an impact of not just

<<124>> paying the farmers and helping them in that way

<<126>> for their revenue generation.

<<128>> We want to help them

<<129>> with hopefully the community in helping to build it.

<<132>> - And you go to the field and you realise

<<135>> that the stuff that's coming out of the ground

<<137>> is what's going into the still, is what's going

<<139>> into the bottle and you know, just, you can just see it.

<<142>> I think everyone believes it already,

<<144>> but when when you see something

<<146>> so obviously true to what we're talking about

<<149>> you realise that this is the real deal.