The production of essential oil is achieved by a process called steam distillation. This involves mixing the plant material and high- pressure steam, breaking the membranes of the cells in the plant tissue containing the oil and releasing the essential oil into the stream in the distillation unit. The steam is cooled by condensation and separated from the oil.

Essential oils have been traded internationally for several centuries including a diverse range of climatic regions and agricultural land. The sustainable competitive advantage of our country to participate in this global market include:- at climatic diversity

SEOBI focuses on transferring appropriate technical and business skills to emerging farmers in order to facilitate starting and increasing commercially viable essential oil production on their farms.

The farmers that form part of SEOBI’s business incubation programme produce a range of conventional and organic essential oils that are in high demand in the international markets.