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Why frankincense and myrrh are so expensive

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="686910" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="frankincense">Frankincense</keyword> and <keyword id="721609" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Myrrh">myrrh</keyword> have been prized across the world for over 6,000 year.</li><li>The Roman Catholic Church uses an estimated 50 metric tons of frankincense a year.</li><li>Frankincense essential oil can be sold for as much as $6,000 per liter.</li></ul>Following is a transcript of the <keyword id="21654" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="video">video</keyword>.Narrator: Frankincense and myrrh are perhaps best known for their biblical connotations. But this tree sap has been prized across the world for over 6,000 years. These fragrant incense pieces come from the Burseraceae family of trees and are found across the Horn of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. But despite recent attempts to protect these trees, they could soon be headed for extinction.So, what makes frankincense and myrrh <keyword id="9073273" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="so-expensive">so expensive</keyword>?There are roughly 550 species of Burseraceae, a collection of trees often referred to as the incense tree family, recognizable for their flaking aromatic bark and fragrant sap. But true frankincense comes from only a small fraction of those species.Muez Hailu, Director of Forest Development: "In Ethiopia, there are six species of gum and resin trees. One of those species is called Boswellia papyrifera. That's its scientific name. It is highly demanded in the international market."Narrator: Frankincense is a milky white resin derived from Boswellia trees, which are remarkable for their ability to grow in unforgiving conditions. In fact, these trees have been known to grow out of solid rock. Myrrh, on the other hand, is a reddish resin extracted from Commiphora trees. The process of extracting sap from Boswellia and Commiphora trees is virtually identical. Incisions, or taps, are made in the bark of the tree, which create injury. The trees produce a gummy resin, like a scab, as a protection against the injury. The resin then hardens into teardrop pieces. More incisions are made at important intervals to continue the production of resin exudates.Melles Gebru, Tapper at Baeker Site: "First, we tap here. We call this a target. This one is already wounded. After 15 days, the exudates will be ready to detach. This is called "KNFRIT". After 15 days, with the same process we detach it again. This is called "SALSYEN". At the same time, we also collect some gum resins out of it. After another 15 days, which is called "RABE'YEN," we collect some more. We do the same process continuously every 15 days."Narrator: The resin granules collected from the trees must be separated into different grades. First grade-A frankincense is clear, white, and without impurities. Smaller pieces of the same high-quality granules are separated within a sieve and classified as first grade-B frankincense. The grades gradually deteriorate based on the size and the amount of impurities, such as bark infused into the resin. Low-quality frankincense is mainly sold for local market consumption, whereas grades one, two, three, and four are exported.Zereu Aregehegn, Guna Trading PLC: "This one is called first grade A, and it is more expensive. We have put it in line based on their quality and grade standard here, and this one is expensive. Here we buy the unprocessed around 15,800 birr without VAT."Narrator: That means that at wholesale, this sack of first grade-A Ethiopian frankincense is worth about $430. Frankincense and myrrh have been burnt as incense for thousands of years, and both are deeply ingrained in religious ceremonial burnings. In fact, it's estimated that the Roman Catholic Church alone still uses an estimated 50 metric tons of frankincense a year.Frankincense and myrrh were some of the most highly prized commodities in ancient civilizations and became the driving force behind the creation of the incense trade routes, a vast network of major land and sea passageways dating back to 300 BC that linked the Mediterranean to luxury goods from the south. At the height of their use, these routes allowed the transport of approximately 3,000 tons of incense every year, hauled by camels.Today, alongside its medicinal and cosmetic uses, frankincense has found a surge in popularity as an essential oil, which in its purest form can be sold for as much as $6,000 per liter. Frankincense essential oil alone generated more than $190 million in 2018, and that's expected to exceed $406 million by 2028.But with so much money to be made from damaging a tree, the tapping process, which should happen only two or three times a year, is under threat not only from environmental dangers such as wildfires, but also from local untrained tappers. It can sometimes take decades for these trees to start producing resin, so the sustainability of the species relies on injuring the tree without killing it.Kindeya Gebrehiwot: Unfortunately, the harvesting process of frankincense is very damaging to the tree. So, every time people go there and make wounds and then collect the sap, that doesn't give enough time to rest for the tree and heal itself. So, one of our findings is this tree is really under a threat.Narrator: The International Union for Conservation of Nature categorized the Boswellia sacra species as near threatened over 20 years ago, and the lack of overharvesting laws in some countries means that protecting Boswellia trees in such remote areas is virtually impossible. Experts who surveyed aging Boswellia papyrifera trees in North Africa suggested that most hadn't produced a young tree in half a century.Muez Hailu, Director of forest development: "If we use inappropriate tapping methods, the tree can be destroyed and will vanish in five to 10 years. This tree is irreplaceable. So far we have not been successful in reproducing it through cutting and planting seedlings of the tree. We have to be careful about the tapping and management of this natural resource. We have benefited from the production of frankincense for centuries in this region. However, in some areas, it is now extinct."

<ul class="summary-list"><li>A 2,000-year-old mummy was found dumped in the trash in Yemen. </li><li>Local officials said the mummy was likely abandoned by grave robbers and antiquities smugglers. </li></ul>A <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ancient-mummy-discovered-egypt-gold-2023-1">mummy</a> believed to be around 2,000 years old has been found dumped in the trash in Yemen's capital Sanaa with its insides ripped out.Yemen's General Organization of Antiquities and Museums (GOAM) on Wednesday blamed "tomb robbers and antiquities traffickers" for exhuming the artifact. The body was found curled up in a fetal position, wrapped in animal hide, as was traditional for embalming at the time. The smugglers had opened the corpse's abdomen before dumping it, per <a href="https://www.arabnews.com/node/2265711/middle-east" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Arab news. </a><div type="image" title="Men, one in military garb, look at the mummy wrapped in white cloth" height="720" width="960" msid="98546519" hostid="261" sizebytes="59306"></div>The discovery has caused fury among locals, who have seen their rare historical artifacts threatened by the country's long-raging civil war, per the <a href="https://www.arabnews.com/node/2265711/middle-east" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Saudi-Arabian daily </a>Arab News."It has been taken to the National Museum in Sanaa for preservation and experts from the board will treat it for bacterial decay that started to appear and studies are being conducted," the Organization said, per the post.Ancient Yemenis were the third people to discover mummification, after the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ancient-egyptian-didnt-intend-preserve-mummy-bodies-say-scientists-2022-12">Egyptians</a> and the Chileans, per GOAM.The remains are likely from the third of fourth century BC, GOAM said, meaning this person may have lived during the legendary Kingdom of Saba, which is thought to have been the land of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.<div type="image" title="The feet of the mummy are shown in th picture, wrapped in animal hide, curled up on themselves" height="567" width="756" msid="98546521" hostid="261" sizebytes="49452"></div>The Sabaeans' built a lush and prosperous trading empire from their close proximity to the sea and strategic geographic position, ferrying goods such as Frankincense and Myrrh through the desert. Ancient mummies can be found in caves and built-up rocky graves through the Saba, Himyar, Qataban, Awsan, Ma'in, and Hadramout governates of Yemen, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/culturalheritageYemen/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Abdullah Mohsen,</a> a Yemeni researcher who tracks antiquities smuggling said in a Facebook post. In the midst of one of the world's most severe <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/yemen-conflict-explained-2019-2?r=US&amp;IR=T#the-houthi-rebels-1">humanitarian crises after decades of conflict</a>, the Yemeni are also struggling to keep hold of this ancient heritage.A <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-mummies-idUSKBN17Y16M" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2017 report</a> said that power shortages could threaten the preservation of 12 mummies Sanaa University Museum in the Yemeni capital.

A 2,000-year-old mummy was found dumped in the trash in Yemen with its insides ripped out

<ul class="summary-list"><li>First-grade agarwood can cost as much as $100,000 per kilogram.</li><li>In order for the aquilaria tree to produce any agarwood, it must first become infected.</li><li>Agarwood chips also known as oud are carved out by hand.</li></ul>Below is a transcript of the <keyword id="21654" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="video">video</keyword>:For thousands of years, agarwood has been known as "The Wood of the Gods." First-grade agarwood can cost as much as $100,000 per kilogram, making it one of the most expensive raw materials in the world. But for this tree to produce any agarwood, it must first become infected with mold.So, how does this infection process work? What is agarwood used for? And what makes it so valuable?Aquilaria malaccensis is a tree native to the rainforests of southeast Asia. Prior to infection, the healthy heartwood inside Aquilaria trees is pale, odorless, and worthless. However, in the wild, damage to the tree by external forces, such as grazing animals, sporadically results in the growth of a specific type of fungal infection inside the tree called Phialophora parasitica.The Aquilaria's defense to this attack is to produce a stress-induced aromatic resin called aloes, which is dark and moist. Over the course of several years, the aloes slowly embed into the heartwood to create agarwood.Truong Thanh Khoan: For an experienced woodsman, they can look at an Aquilaria tree and predict whether it has agarwood inside or not. Ants bore into the tree trunk, causing a wound and bringing in the microorganisms, bacteria, fungus spores into the trunk of the tree. The ant secretes a fluid that damages the tree, and then the tree uses its own sap to cover the wounds, which will turn into agarwood after a long time.Narrator: Once agarwood is harvested, it needs to be separated from the healthy Aquilaria wood around it. In a painstaking task that often takes hours, resin-infused chips, also known as oud, are carved out by hand. Oud chips are commonly used as incense, particularly in the Middle East, where they're burnt both as tokens of hospitality and infused into clothes and garments as a perfume.Truong Thanh Khoan: When burning, we see the smoke first, then the aroma begins to emit. The typical aroma of agarwood, there is no other scent equal to it. Then it slowly begins to have a sweet smell. In a closed room it can last up to three to five hours.Narrator: Oud is also distilled into an essential oil. And in its purest form, aged oud oil can cost up to $80,000 per liter, earning the nickname amongst traders of "liquid gold." As its popularity continues to grow in the West, oud has become a common ingredient in several high-value fragrances, adding a warm, musky aroma. But due to unsustainable production and poaching, all varieties of Aquilaria trees are now classified as critically endangered, with experts estimating the global population has declined by 80% over the last 150 years. Even for those surviving Aquilaria trees, the frequency of natural fungal infection is extremely low. Some estimates say only 2% of wild Aquilaria trees are adequately infected to produce agarwood naturally, meaning the hunt to find natural agarwood is extremely arduous.Truong Thanh Khoan: A group of five to 10 people went to the forest for 15 to 20 days, but as soon as we found agarwood, we came back. Sometimes we could not find anything. Even if you spend up to 20 days in the forest, you could still come back empty handed. It's very dangerous — rain, mountains, wild animals — so it was normal that someone lost their life in the forest. Back then it was normal to die in the forest. Now there is no more agarwood in the forest. It's all gone. People exploited it all.Narrator: With natural agarwood now bordering on extinction, in some forestries, like this one managed by Truong in <keyword id="13486" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Vietnam">Vietnam</keyword>, trees are artificially inoculated with a microbial compound to induce the all-important resin.Truong Thanh Khoan: Natural agarwood is rare, so people prefer to use it. But the truth is that the quality of artificial agarwood is not necessarily inferior to natural agarwood. Natural agarwood is now very valuable. It can be 100 times higher than artificial agarwood. Because there isn't any natural agarwood in nature, people can set any price for it. Artificial agarwood is known to be a human-made product, so the prices are lower.Narrator: Agarwood was described as a fragrant product of wealth and <keyword id="6363239" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="luxury">luxury</keyword> in one of the world's oldest written texts, the Sanskrit Vedas, dating back as early as 1,400 BC. The aroma produced from agarwood has been highly valued by many cultures and religions throughout history.In the Nirvana Sutra, aloes is mentioned as a "heavenly wood" used in the cremation of Buddha. In the New Testament, Jesus' body was anointed with a mixture of myrrh and aloes following his crucifixion. And in the Sahih al-Bukhari Hadith, the description of Paradise by Allah's messenger includes the burning of agarwood as incense.The global market for agarwood is estimated to be worth a staggering $32 billion. But where oud was once so common, high demand has not only increased the price, but also the rate of harvesting and artificial production. By the end of 2029, the market is expected to double to $64 billion.

First-grade agarwood can cost as much as $100,000 per kilogram. Why is it so expensive?

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Why frankincense and myrrh are so expensive

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Why frankincense and myrrh are so expensive

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A 2,000-year-old mummy was found dumped in the trash in Yemen with its insides ripped out

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