Living Magazine doTERRA Spring 2017 | Page 7

W e live in a day when international discovery is more available and valuable for our well-being than ever before; specifically, finding ideal sources for different types of oils. do-TERRA has an established sourcing standard that positively impacts the entire oil industry, health-wise and economically. No longer are farmers being underpaid. Farmers have the assurance of reliable payment, as well as a premium for the oil that is sourced. do-TERRA's Co-Impact Sourcing ® initiative has not only changed the oil industry, but also individual's’ lives in communities. dōTERRA recently teamed up with several Petitgrain farmers in Paraguay to ensure we receive the highest quality, purest oil sourced from the bitter orange tree. Petitgrain belongs to the Rutaceae family and is believed to have originated in Southeast Asia. During the establishment of the New World in the 18th and 19th centuries, the Spanish Jesuits brought the bitter orange plant with them. Orange trees quickly spread throughout the forests and jungles of Paraguay. Various hybrids were cultivated. Finding farmers that grew healthy crops of the bitter orange tree proved difficult at first. Once dōTERRA secured enough farmers for the needed amount, we began educating. At dōTERRA, we are uncompromising when it comes to purity and potency. Due to this strict standard, we have ongoing trainings for these farmers to ensure purity and potency for generations to come. When dōTERRA went to Paraguay to identify farmers with whom we wanted to partner and source Petitgrain oil, run-down distillation facilities and collapsed wells were found. Since dōTERRA has started working in Paraguay with these farming families, new interest has sparked in Petitgrain production and dōTERRA has been able to be the catalyst for revitalizing several Petitgrain production areas that are particularly in need of economic opportunity. “Through supplying technical assistance and training on methods for improving distillation practices and oil quality, as well as providing guaranteed long-term contracts to these partner farming families, dōTERRA Co-Impact Sourcing is truly able to provide sustainable opportunities in these impoverished areas,” stated Tim Valentiner, dōTERRA Director of Strategic Sourcing. “This is always at the core of what we hope to accomplish through Co-Impact Sourcing.” Jared Moon, dōTERRA Strategic Sourcing Manager, has been managing sourcing efforts in Paraguay since 2016. “Having lived in Paraguay, it has been amazing to go back and work with rural farmers. This project has been near and dear to my heart because of the love I share with the people of Paraguay. I know a farmer with three kids in college. This farmer has a tiny house out in a rural area of Paraguay, but he is able to send his three kids to college due to the premium that we pay. By working with rural farmers and rural areas that are very impoverished, we’ll be able to provide jobs for the famers themselves as well as an incentive for their children to stay there and work the land these families have harvested for decades.” doterra.com / 7