The clove tree and its products (clove bud, clove oil, eugenol): prosperous today but what of tomorrow’s restrictions?

Abstract

Context of the study – The clove tree, farmed primarily in Indonesia, Madagascar, the Comoros, Tanzania and Sri Lanka, produces two major commodities: the clove and the eugenol-rich essential oil. At the present time, the clove caters to the spice market, which is concentrated in India, as well as the market for the traditional Indonesian cigarette, the kretek, which accounts for 70% of world output. The essential oil extract is exploited for its various properties: plasticising, anaesthetic, antimicrobial and organoleptic, which are deployed in the cosmetics, dentistry and agro-food sectors. Several innovative, often cutting edge, applications are currently being researched, taking advantage of its profile as an organic product derived from green chemistry, implicated in the agroecology approach. The main areas concerned are medicine, agri-food and agronomy. Aim of the study – We are considering a series of plausible hypotheses of evolutions in demand on the international market, to assess how the development of current and potential applications might steer the market in the coming years and decades. We are exploring their impact on the offer of producing countries, and therefore, on the incomes of local farmers and distillers. Methodology – Our approach is based on an extensive bibliography. Remarkable results – The clove sector is under threat from various sources: American cigarette manufacturers' offensive to conquer the vast Indonesian market, disregard for quality, inter-annual variation of production, competition between clove producing countries, as well as substitute products, impact of oil extraction methods on firewood consumption. A few forward-looking elements are given, particularly concerning the impact of climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion – These threats need to be anticipated and taken into consideration by all actors of the sectors for the clove and its products to continue providing a reliable source of income to thousands of small farmers in the producing countries.