These tiny bottles are filled with drops of joy. Essential oils are the perfect choice to create a warm and comfortable atmosphere. From meditative rituals, self-care routines, mood uplifting acts, to craft all sorts of DIY everyday essentials… organic essential oils are most definitely on the rise!
Essential oils have quickly become a must-have in the toolkit for every home. And that’s no wonder since essential oils have multiple therapeutic purposes. They help increase your overall wellbeing and support your health.
When ethically-made and organic, essential oils also become an easy option to make a homemade remedy. These powerful aromatic oils, distilled directly from many medicinal plants, were used in ancient times for health purposes.
Today, as we are learning about all the toxins we’re exposed to daily with the use of household, hygiene, and beauty products, we’re going back to basics with the use of essential oils.
Sustainable uses of organic essential oils
There are multiple and sustainable uses you can incorporate into your daily life. Sometimes it requires a bit of creativity, to understand all the range of plant essences that are available for us to explore.
Depending on the essential oil, they’re suitable to use in diffusers; their aromatherapeutic oomph will immediately uplift the energy of whoever walks into the room. A common practice also is to inhale them, and also use them topically and/or internally. For this, you must always do your research on how it’s most safe to use each essence.
Essential oils’ therapeutic effects make them suitable to use for personal care products, dietary supplements, and immune system boosters.
And since we are meeting here, for all the earthy people, nature explorers, and plant lovers, this is where we do sustainable talk. You’ll be thrilled to realize that essential oils have become the go-to ingredient to elaborate our everyday essentials.
If you’re into a zero-waste lifestyle and determined to decrease the plastic packaging, as much as the toxins and nasties right from your home… Then essential oils shall be the answer.
Add a few peppermint drops into your toothpaste mixture, apply a bit of lavender oil on your neck before going to bed, or let’s say, lemon essential oil to your all-natural DIY cleaning product. Truth is, essential oils go a long way!
If you choose to have your favorite range of organic essential oils among your staples, you’ll slowly discover that you can create hundreds of products at home in a simple way. Essential oils offer a sensorial experience, and very soon you’ll find yourself looking for options to incorporate into your daily self-care habits.
Besides, you can also enhance your wellbeing by using essential oils in your bath, for massages, as a fragrance… Sounds romantic right? We told you, essential oils are a must-have!
And we dare to say: organic essential oils are the perfect idea to celebrate the lover’s day – pssst… every-single-day. You can most definitely make a date more meaningful and create out of essential oils a truly special Valentine’s ritual!
So welcome to the paradise of good brands & all-natural living, because we’ve curated a list of ethically made & organic essential oils brands to help you equip your staples ensuring the health and wellbeing of all creatures on this Earth.
Why is it important to use organic essential oils?
The way the oils are made is important, as essential oils obtained through chemical processes are not considered true essential oils.
Truth is that with the rise in popularity of essential oils, today many brands come with lower prices, which is usually indicative that those essential oils lack quality. In the process of creating the oils, they could be using potential synthetic compounds, which can be potentially harmful to you as well.
Some tips to find truly ethically made & sustainable essential oils:
- Price: when comparing brands, usually you’ll find that fake essential oils come at a very low price.
- Reputation: we recommend doing your research, looking for reviews, and reading on the brand’s website. Look out for their information about sustainable and ethical practises, and check if they carry any official certifications, especially those that validate the oils have been made using organic methods.
- Quality: good quality essential oils are highly concentrated, so ensure that they’ve been wildcrafted and organically sourced, with no use of chemicals or pesticides.
- Botanical name: look for the scientific name of the plant. If not listed, it could mean that’s not pure but scented.
- Aroma: essential oils should not carry any perfumey smells, so watch out for the potential chemical scents to ensure it’s not a scented oil.
- Touch: when using the essential oil, feel if it absorbs through the skin without leaving a greasy film. This will be a sign that’s a real therapeutic oil.
- “Clinical Grade” or “Therapeutic Grade”: these terms are not standardised in the industry, therefore be careful of the potential greenwashing! If you’re doubtful, it’s recommendable to contact the company directly: those brands that are ethical and sustainable would be honest and transparent about their essential oils.
Extraction process: authentic essential oils should be extracted using steam distillation, mechanical expression, absolutes, and CO2 extracts.
Pro Tip: Share this page with your friends and family on socials, bookmark it for future occasions. This is a go-to-guide to inspire more people in your circle to embrace a more sustainable way of living!
Ethically-made & Organic essential oils
Table of Contents
1. Neal’s Yard Remedies
Natural inner & outer beauty, Established in 1981, Neal’s Yard Remedies is a modern apothecary, creating award-winning natural and organic health and beauty.
From small beginnings in a quiet corner of Covent Garden, they’re now a global leader of beauty, body care and wellness products using ethically sourced herbs, botanicals and essential oils. There are experts behind the handcraft of Neal’s Yard Remedies potent blends of love, science and nature, with all the natural antioxidants, vitamins and minerals and no harmful pesticides.
The brand uses the highest possible percentage of organic ingredients as they are kinder to the earth – and kinder to you. The 92% of their physically processed agricultural ingredients (defined by the COSMOS standard) are certified organic by weight; also Neal’s Yard Remedies is committed to using no genetically modified (GMO) ingredients.
The health and beauty products are made at a purpose-built eco factory in Dorset, in small batches to ensure they are as fresh and effective as possible. Their own production team fills, labels and packages their products before checking every bottle, jar and tube by hand to ensure quality and consistency.
The company is certified CarbonNeutral®, having offset their greenhouse gas emissions every year since 2008. They also use renewable energy with 700m2 of solar panels installed generating more than 5% of their own electricity. This is topped up by a 100% UK sourced renewable tariff, greatly reducing air pollution as well as carbon emissions.
Price: from USD $8.00
Certifications: Soil Association, Carbon Neutral, Cruelty Free International, Cruelty-free
Ethical Values: Fair-trade, Locally Made, Organic, Clean Ingredients
2. Jade Bloom
Jade Bloom promotes mental wellness through meditation and mindfulness with the use of essential oils. The brand is all about educating their members about how to safely and effectively use natural products. The ultimate goal is to take incremental steps towards bringing Health, Healing, & Happiness® to you and your family, as well as to those that are involved in the sourcing and making Jade Bloom products.
The brand manufactures the highest quality & lowest cost all-natural products and essential oils, while educating on health supported by the latest scientific studies. Jade Bloom oils are 100% pure, where no chemicals have been used nor the oils have been diluted in any way.
The brand sources our raw plants and seeds from about 30 different farms depending on known locations around the world for producing the highest quality raw materials for the particular oil. For example, our Lavender comes from the Kashmir region in the Himalayan Mountains known for producing the sweetest smelling and highest therapeutic Lavender in the world. For this same reason our Bergamot comes from Italy, our Clary Sage from Russia, and our Tea Tree from Australia.
They are 100% pure natural goodness from only the single raw plant or seed that we have sourced. Jade Bloom only sources their raw plants and seeds from those farms that they personally visit and audit on a regular basis to ensure we receive pesticide-free, organic, non-GMO materials.
Price: from USD $5.00
Ethical Values: Fair-trade, Locally Made, Organic, Clean Ingredients, Vegan, Cruelty-free
3. Aromatherapy Associates
Aromatherapy Associates was founded in the mid-Eighties, with the purpose to help people in times of need, support them through the highs and lows of life and help their wellbeing.
The aromatherapeutic and essential oils range are crafted from nature’s finest to create their mood, spirit and mind-enhancing formulations. The selection of high-quality, pure essential oil blends are perfect to use with The Atomiser for pure, undiluted diffusion to promote a therapeutic home environment. A few drops of our essential oils can also be added to 5ml of your chosen carrier oil to apply onto skin. Or, enjoy a few luxurious drops to a warm bath.
The brand always tries to source the best possible essential oils and ingredients. They also believe, in some cases, there are greater benefits from sourcing an ingredient from its natural environment rather than from an organic farm. For example, they like to source their lavender from the Alps rather than an organic farm in the UK.
Aromatherapy Associates headquarters uses 100% renewable energy and all their retail cartons use paper from 100% sustainable forests (FSC certified). The brand has removed over 1.5 tonnes of virgin plastic from our products in 2020, and use fully recyclable and, where possible, reusable packaging.
As a B Corp, they aim to create a better business that represents the highest standards of environmental and social impact. For instance, their employees are encouraged to take a collective 500 hours per year to undertake work with our community charity partners. The brand also gives back, where 10% of proceeds from their Inner Strength Blend are donated to the Defence Against Cancer Foundation in Holland. These proceeds support invaluable research into immunotherapy, a new and promising cancer treatment which uses the body’s own immune system to fight the disease. In support of our sponsorship with Mind, the mental health charity, they donated £25,000 towards their continued support of the UK’s mental wellbeing.
Price: from USD $24.80
Certification: B Corporation
Ethical Values: Clean Ingredients, Vegan, Cruelty-free, Organic, Sustainable Materials, Locally Made, Fair Trade, Give Back
4. Plant Therapy
Plant Therapy strives to bring quality essential oils from ethical, sustainable sources, and they are devoted to being a company that values its customers, its employees, and the community.
Whether you know nothing about essential oils and are just starting to research them or you have been using them for many, many years, this brand put at your disposal a healthy range of organic essential oils along with a bunch of educational resources to create your blends, with creativity and play.
The brand has also created the first ever full line of KidSafe® synergies. Formulated by Robert Tisserand, whenever a bottle carries this logo, parents can know without a doubt that they are helping bless the lives of their children with the safest and most effective oils on the market for their young ones. In addition to providing dilution guidelines and any additional cautions for all essential oils, they also provide safety information for using oils with children, pets, and pregnant or nursing mothers.
At Plant Therapy, safety and education are at the heart of everything they do. In addition to offering pure, high-quality essential oils, natural body care products, and CBD, they want to give you the tools and know-how so that you can safely use essential oils and understand the ingredients used in their products. And because Plant Therapy values transparency and honesty, they publish test reports for the essential oils, carrier oils, and CBD as well as offer affordable prices for all their products.
Plant Therapy is also dedicated to giving back to the community, both locally and globally so they can have a positive impact on as many people as possible.
Price: from USD $7.95
Certification: USDA Organic, GMP Certification and Leaping Bunny.
Ethical Values: Clean Ingredients, Vegan, Cruelty-free, Organic, Locally Made, Fair Trade, Give Back
5. Urbankissed
Although not purely an essential oils brand, Urbankissed is a conscious online destination for sustainable fashion, skincare & home accessories.
In this ethical marketplace, you will also find a range of essential oils from the Swiss company eResonance. The brand supports you in your sustainable & aromatherapeutic journey with all the essentials you need for stress relief and self-care.
They source the highest quality raw materials from organic farmers and producers to create their sensational AromaCare Essentials. All of the oils are 100% organic (Swiss bio-inspecta certified), sustainably, sourced from family farms, and they use all recyclable materials from production, to shipping.
By supporting eResonance you are not only supporting small farmers, but also women in third world countries. The brand plant trees around the globe to offset our carbon footprint, and also donates to CAMFED to support women in Africa with education.
Price: from USD $5.50
Certifications: Swiss bio-inspecta certified
Ethical Values: Clean Ingredients, Organic, Vegan, Cruelty-free, Locally Made, Fair Trade, Give Back
6. TISSERAND
TISSERAND is a brand of pure essential oils and award-winning aromatherapy bath, body and natural wellbeing products.
They’re experts in sourcing and blending 100% natural pure essential oils since 1974. The company today brings together a team of experienced individuals who source completely organic, wild crafted or ethically harvested essential oils from all over the world and create unique and innovative blends to enhance your wellbeing.
Dedicated to sharing its knowledge in order for everyone to benefit from a healthier body and mind, its essential oils are available in their unadulterated form, in innovative pre-blends and premium bath and body collection.
Price: from USD $5.50
Certifications: Vegan Society
Ethical Values: Fair-trade, Locally Made, Sustainable Materials, Clean Ingredients, Vegan, Organic, Cruelty-free
7. Odylique
Odylique was one of the first companies to create certified organic cosmetics and formulate the purest cosmetics possible. Today it’s a multi award-winning brand with a wide range in beauty, body care and baby products, including a range of essential oils, supplements and make-up.
It started with Margaret. Thirty years ago, Margaret Weeds – Nottingham native, contemporary of one Anita Roddick, and qualified in herbal medicine and aromatherapy – was suffering with very, very sensitive skin. She wasn’t alone: eczema ran in her family and she and her children were all plagued with sore, dry, itchy patches. It being the late 80s, conventional cosmetics or prescription skincare were the only real option available. These were often packed with petroleum, artificial additives and other skin irritants which simply didn’t suit her allergy-prone skin.
Each and every one of Odylique ingredients has therapeutic credentials. They make this happen by using actives – herbs and essential oils – in therapeutic concentrations. Plant oils must be virgin and cold-pressed so that they have their full antioxidant vitamin-content intact (this more actively nourishes the skin and protects it from premature ageing). Odylique doesn’t do synthetic chemicals. Ever. Everything is certified to strict Soil Association organic standards. The brand leaves out lanolin, wheat, dairy & soya derivatives, salicylic acid, peanut oil, common allergen tree nut oils and more… all the things that can upset sensitive skin.
Odylique NEVER tests on animals. Instead, they test on human volunteers who have sensitive and allergy-prone skin. The brand also makes sure that their raw materials suppliers and all of their distributors follow the no-testing-on-animals rule, as well as adhere to Fair Trade standards and use responsible, sustainable packaging.
Price: from USD $6.75
Certifications: Soil Association, PETA, Ethical Company Organisation
Ethical Values: Fair-trade, Locally Made, Organic, Clean Ingredients, Cruelty-free
8. doTERRA
doTerra is one of the most sustainable essential oils, with aromatic compounds carefully extracted from plants. They can be used with health and wellbeing benefits and it also impacts communities producers of these beautiful oils. The range of essential oils and natural beauty and cleaning products is endless.
They are free from fillers or artificial ingredients; no dilution of active qualities. Also free of contaminants, pesticides, or chemical residues. Sourced from the best plant material found around the globe. Through a global network of leading essential oil chemists and growers to ensure correct species, growth in ideal environments, and harvest the raw plant carefully at the right time.
doTerra’s impact of how and where they are sourced goes beyond a drop of oil. It is a catalyst for changing many lives, as two-third parts of the countries that source the doTerra essential oils are considered developing countries.Some of the producers are Somalia, Guatemala, Haiti, among others.
doTerra founded the Co-Impact Sourcing®, a supply chain program that helps them to provide a job and sustainable income. These communities grow, harvest, and distill these oils. As well, the organization creates coalitions that ensure local communities receive fair and timely payments to support their families and communities. Also, they provide the resources, tools, and training necessary to ensure a long-lasting partnership.
Additionally, doTerra founded their charitable organization, the Healing Hands Foundation. Its aim is to provide funding and resources to create community-based social impact projects in the areas where they source the oils. The final mission is to bring healing and hope to the world, for lives free of disease and poverty. Ultimately, to teach impoverished cultures to be self-reliant.
Price: from USD $13.00
Certifications: Certified Pure Tested Grade – CPTG®
Ethical Values: Organic, Clean Ingredients, Vegan, Cruelty-free, Social, Justice, Give Back, Fair-trade
9. Bloomtown
Bloomtown’s multi-award-winning products are all expertly formulated, blended and poured in their workshop in gorgeous Cornwall, UK. Besides essential oils, in their range you can find candles, bath oils, salt soaks, clay masks, lip care, sugar scrubs, soaps and deodorants.
Bloomtown is also the first UK’s 1st Independently Certified Palm Oil-Free Company, also Certified Vegan & Cruelty-Free, and NO nasties like sulphates, parabens, PEGs, petrochemicals, phthalates, TEA/MEA/DEA, synthetic colours, SLS.
To reduce plastic waste, Bloomtown uses glass bottles and jars, paper tape & biodegradable starch packaging fillers. Also, the brand purchases its materials and packaging from companies that have a fair trade and ethical workplace policy in place.
Price: from USD $11.00
Certifications: Cruelty-Free, Vegan, Good Shopping Guide Ethical Beauty, Palm oil free
Ethical Values: Organic, Clean Ingredients, Vegan, Cruelty-free, Eco-friendly, Fair-trade, Locally Made, Handcrafted
10. Woolzies
Woolzies Home Essentials is a small family owned company nestled in the picturesque Hudson Valley region of Southern New York State. The brand’s mission is to provide essential household products which are made naturally and responsibly, without sacrificing quality, safety or integrity.
Their range of organic essential oils and essential oil blends, are made using 100% certified natural products are formulated to be safe and effective, with a range of high-performance products without anything toxic to our products, like parabens or artificial fragrances.
Price: from USD $11.00
Certifications: Certified Organic
Ethical Values: Sustainable Materials, Clean Ingredients, Vegan, Cruelty-free
11. Buckaroo Organics
Buckaroo Organics brings a range of chemical free products made safe enough for babies and tough enough for even the roughest cowboys! From essential oils, to their popular Soapberry Suds natural laundry detergent, they’re all especially made for sensitive skin.
All of the Buckaroo products are created to have simple safe ingredients that anyone can pronounce. No chemicals. No toxins. Organic, natural, simple, and of the greatest quality is what you’ll find with Buckaroo Organics.
Most of their products specialize to be hypoallergenic. This means they are proven to soothe skin, not irritate it. You and your lil’ buckaroos will be safe, happy, and on the trail to a healthier way of being! Made in Montana. Hand picked natural & organic ingredients straight out of God’s Country.
Price: from USD $8.95
Certifications: Not available
Ethical Values: Organic, Clean Ingredients, Cruelty-free, Fair-trade, Locally Made, Eco-friendly
12. Thistle Farms
At Thistle Farms you’ll find a wide range of beauty, personal hygiene and natural health products. For their essential oils range, the brand prioritizes sourcing all of their oils from sustainable sources, but not all of our oils are completely organic. Rose Geranium, for instance, is sourced from their partner Ikirezi, an organic agribusiness located in Rwanda that employs genocide survivors.
In this sense, Thistle Farms products directly impacts the healing and empowerment of women survivors of trafficking, prostitution, and addiction in the USA. This social enterprise helps survivors with job training, employment, medical attention, housing, healing & more. They run a free 2-year program that provides survivors a safe place to live, a meaningful job, and a sisterhood of support. Their model connects survivor artisans from around the world and provides over 50% of profits back to the artisan group.
Price: from USD $15.00
Certifications: Not available
Ethical Values: Fair-trade, Locally Made, Handcrafted, Sustainable Materials, Clean Ingredients, Social Justice, Give Back
We will continue to keep this blog updated, so if you have a suggestion of a similar sustainably made and organic essential oil brand please share in the comments below!
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