Deep in the Amazon rainforest, a copaiba (copaifera) tree grows. Surrounded by year-round warmth, abundant rainfall, and humid tropical air, it can grow more than 100 feet tall, anchoring itself with deep roots as it becomes part of one of the most biologically diverse ecosystems on Earth. Hidden within its trunk is a golden oleoresin —a naturally occurring blend of resin and essential oil— that has been valued by Amazonian communities for generations and is now carefully harvested to produce dōTERRA Copaiba essential oil.
But the story of Copaiba begins with more than a tree. It begins with the families who travel deep into the forest to care for and harvest these trees, drawing on knowledge passed down through generations.
Local tradition says copaiba’s beneficial properties were first recognized after indigenous people observed animals rubbing against the trees. Since then, communities throughout the Amazon have used copaiba as part of their traditional practices.
Today, the relationship between the trees, the harvesters, and the forest remains inseparable. Understanding where Copaiba essential oil comes from means following that relationship into the wild heart of the Amazon.
Sourcing copaiba from the Amazon means going far beyond the major roads, cities, and commercial centers of Brazil. Rather than buying the oleoresin from an intermediary at the edge of the forest, dōTERRA works with local sourcing partners to reach the remote communities living in the heart of the forest where the trees thrive.
Reaching these small communities isn’t a quick road trip just an hour or two away from the city. One of the villages in our sourcing network, Curequetê, requires a seven-hour drive followed by an eight-hour boat ride to reach. This community is made up of one school, nine homes, and 14 families, all living along the Ituxi river.
The river serves as the primary mode of transportation between homes, schools, healthcare services, neighboring communities, and towns. In some areas, a small boat collects children and ferries them to school each day.
The river also determines when harvesters can collect copaiba oleoresin. During the Amazon’s rainy season, which typically runs from January through June, the river and its tributaries can rise by an average of 20 feet, making remote areas of the forest more accessible by boat.
Traveling this far into the Amazon is essential to understanding the true origin of the oil. Working directly with local sourcing partners and community associations gives dōTERRA greater visibility into how the oleoresin is harvested, how families are compensated, and what the communities behind the oil need most.
The families who harvest copaiba possess generations of knowledge about the forest and the trees within it. Yet their remote location can make it difficult to reach dependable markets and receive a fair, predictable price for their work. Access to transportation, healthcare, education, stable employment, and commercial buyers is limited in many of these communities. As a result, harvesters may have only a few opportunities to sell their copaiba oleoresin.
Visiting traders sometimes offer goods or supplies in place of cash. These items may be overpriced, may not reflect what families actually need, or may make it difficult to understand the true value being paid for the oleoresin. With few alternative buyers available, harvesting families can feel pressured to accept an exchange out of concern that another opportunity may not come.
This type of “in-kind” trading can hide the true price the trader is able to get for the oleoresin when they resell it, and the imbalance gives traveling buyers a significant negotiating advantage and leaves harvesters with little certainty about what their work will ultimately earn.
One harvester, Adalblano, shared this:
“[Our partnership] is very important to us... We really need the support as well. There are those who offer us really cheap prices for the copaiba. The price was established before we left. When we got back from the harvest, they had already changed the price on us. That really hurt us. Today is not that way. We settle on a price with [you all], which allows us to do our work really well.”
Adalblano's experience illustrates why a dependable sourcing relationship matters. Agreeing on a price before the harvest gives families greater confidence as they plan weeks of demanding work in the forest. It also creates a more direct connection between the people collecting the oleoresin and the organizations purchasing it. That connection helps recognize the value of the harvesters’ labor, their traditional knowledge, and their role as caretakers of the forest.
The southern edge of the Amazon Rainforest has been subject to deforestation and has also been called the “deforestation arc” (as the curve of deforested areas form a downward “arc”). This is largely driven by activities such as cattle ranching, large-scale agriculture, mining, and logging.
For families with limited access to dependable income, converting forested land into farms or pasture can appear to offer greater economic security. The cost, however, is the loss of the trees and ecosystems that have supported local communities for generations.
A reliable market for sustainably harvested copaiba offers another possibility.
When families receive a fair and predictable return for copaiba oleoresin, the living forest itself becomes a source of economic opportunity. Harvesters can earn income while remaining on their land, caring for mature trees, and preserving the traditional knowledge required to collect oleoresin responsibly.
In this way, sourcing copaiba can become a practical form of resistance to deforestation. It helps demonstrate that a healthy, standing forest can provide enduring value—not only environmentally, but economically.
By working with community associations and supporting fair prices, dōTERRA helps recognize the value of harvesters’ labor, traditional knowledge, and environmental stewardship. Each responsible harvest reinforces the idea that the forest does not need to be cleared to sustain the people who call it home.
A direct sourcing relationship creates responsibilities that extend beyond purchasing copaiba oleoresin. When dōTERRA works closely with the communities behind the oil, sourcing becomes an opportunity to listen, understand local priorities, and support projects that can make a lasting difference.
This is the purpose of Co-Impact Sourcing®. It means sourcing essential oils and other gifts of the earth with care and respect for both people and planet. It means going to the regions where ingredients naturally thrive, building meaningful relationships with the people who harvest them, and investing in the well-being of their communities.
For the remote Curequetê community in Amazonas, one of the most pressing priorities was reliable access to clean drinking water and adequate sanitation. The community includes one school and 14 families living in nine homes along the Ituxi River, where local water sources showed signs of bacterial contamination, and most homes lacked proper bathroom and wastewater systems.
Completed in July 2026 in partnership with Instituto Desenvolver, the Sustainable Water Supply and Sanitation Project introduced solutions designed specifically for life in the Amazon. These included household and school sanitation modules, rainwater collection systems, wells, solar-powered pumps, and community water treatment, storage, and distribution systems.
Using sustainable, low-maintenance technology, the project is helping reduce health risks and provide families with more dependable access to clean water throughout the year.
The journey of Copaiba essential oil begins with a tree deep in the Amazon, but it does not end when the oleoresin leaves the forest. It continues through the hands of the harvesters who care for the trees, the families who depend on a fair and reliable market, and the communities working to build a secure future without leaving the forest behind.
That is the purpose of Co-Impact Sourcing®: to look beyond the ingredient and recognize everything connected to it. By supporting responsible harvesting practices, fairer economic opportunity, and community-led projects such as clean water and sanitation in Curequetê, sourcing can become part of something larger.
Because when the people who care for the forest are able to thrive within it, the forest has a greater chance to remain standing—for their children, for future generations, and for all of us.
