Locals benefit from essential oil plantations

Locals surrounding Citrefine Plantations Limited (CPL), a company that produces essential oil from a 5 700 hectare plantation in Viphya forest in Northern Malawi are benefiting from planting essential oil trees.

The locals plant trees such as Corymbria citriodora which produces fragrant lemon essential oil and sell to CPL at $42 (about K27 770) per kilogramme (kg) in an out growers scheme that the company is running.

The locals have so far sold 14.2 metric tonnes (MT) of leaf biomass this year.

In an interview on Wednesday, Nebson Chiloko director of Kawandama Hills Plantation where CPL operates, said the company started buying the leaf biomass in 2013 from the locals.

“We allow the locals to plant their own trees and we buy from them as a way of supporting them,” Chiloko said.

He said the growers sell the leaf biomass from eight months and they are expected to harvest from a single tree for 25 years.

Currently the scheme has 12 growers who are planting on 13 hectares.

Chiloko said the number of growers is expected to jump to 40 this year.

Chairperson of the out-growers scheme Daniel Mhone said the locals grabbed the opportunity as it is a hot business than selling green vegetables.

“Apart from selling the leaf biomass to CPL we are also afforesting our area; hence, fighting against climate change,” Mhone said.