Going Green

The name doTERRA is Latin for “Gift of the Earth”—a fitting name for the incredible benefits and uses of essential oils, all derived from pure botanical sources. To truly thank the Earth for her gifts, doTERRA Corporate Headquarters recently launched several new environmental initiatives focused on reducing waste, monitoring our carbon footprint, and increasing sustainability. In this case, the grass truly is (and will be!) greener on the other side. 

Reducing Waste

• Say goodbye to plastic! We’re switching to paper filler for general shipments and have started using recycled cardboard and paper pulp inserts in all of our pre-assembled collections.
• Recycling is cool. Our Product Guide is now printed on recycled material, and it has also been approved by the Forest Stewardship Council—which means that anything harvested to produce these guides come from forests which are responsibly managed in an environmentally conscious, economically viable way. 
• Shipping boxes got a facelift. Your products are now delivered in boxes made from sustainable forestry, containing less corrugate and more recycled materials. 
• Convention just became carbon friendly! We now donate all the props and materials used to put on our gorgeous, yearly Convention to local schools and community events. Sharing our resources is one way to beautify the Earth and our communities! 
• There’s a place for your used bottles. On the Source to You™ website, we have included resources that will help you recycle and upcycle any of your empty bottles. The United States even has an address for an affiliate that will recycle amber bottles! 

Monitoring Our Carbon Footprint

• We love electric. Our Corporate campus now has electric vehicle charging stations to encourage more sustainable, eco-friendly travel among employees. 
• Soy is the new ink! Instead of using environmentally harmful solvents like petroleum, doTERRA Headquarters now prints in soy-based ink. Can you soy awesome? 
• Excess fuel is a thing of the past. The location of our new Alaska Product Center has allowed us to reduce the amount of trucks and fuel used to ship product. By localizing shipment hubs, our negative impact is declining. Less pollution? Yes, please!

Increasing Sustainability

• Their waste is our reward. Black Spruce is largely harvested by commercial lumber industries for paper products, but the needles and branches don’t make the commercial cut. doTERRA takes these otherwise wasted materials and distills them into Black Spruce essential oil. Through an approved forest management plan, these Black Spruce trees and materials are cared for throughout the entire distillation process so their future is still flourishing!
• Coming full circle. To maintain the integrity of the trees from which Frankincense is extracted, resin is methodically removed from one piece of the tree, then harvesters begin extracting from a different side of the tree while waiting for the previous extraction to heal. This system allows trees to go unharmed during the harvesting and distillation process. 
• Trimming back. New Zealand suffers from severe Douglas Fir overgrowth, a choking environmental threat to other wildlife. Their problem is one we can easily aid with—Douglas Fir produces a beautiful, versatile essential oil! Through coordination with local forestry, doTERRA harvests and distills Douglas Fir, giving purpose and meaning to the removal of these regal pines. 

These efforts are just the beginning. As environmental issues continue to arise, doTERRA Corporate hopes to grow even greener—a solution we can all live with and strive for.