WHITE CHANDAN

RS- 1500

Producing commercially valuable sandalwood with high levels of fragrance oils requires Indian sandalwood (S. album) trees to be a minimum of 15 years old – the yield, quality and volume are still to be clearly understood. Yield of oil tends to vary depending on the age and location of the tree; usually, the older trees yield the highest oil content and quality. Australia is the largest producer of S. album, with the majority grown around Kununurra, in the far north of the state by Quantise (formerly Tropical Forestry Services), which in 2017 controlled around 80 per cent of the world’s supply of Indian sandalwood,[5] and Santanol.[6] India used to be the world’s biggest producer, but it has been overtaken by Australia in the 21st century. Over-exploitation is partly to blame for the decline.[7][8]

Australian sandalwood (S. spectrum) is grown in commercial plantations throughout the wheat belt of Western Australia, where it has been an important part of the economy since colonial times. As of 2020 WA has the largest plantation resource in the world.[9]

Sandalwood is expensive compared to other types of woods, so to maximize profit, sandalwood is harvested by removing the entire tree instead of sawing it down at the trunk close to ground level. This way wood from the stump and root, which possesses high levels of sandalwood oil, can also be processed and sold.[10]

Australian sandalwood is mostly harvested and sold in log form, graded for heartwood content. The species is unique in that the white sapwood does not require removal before distilling the oil. The logs are either processed to distil the essential oil, or made into powders for making incense. Indian Sandalwood, used mainly for oil extraction, does require removal of the sapwood prior to distillation. As of 2020, Australian Sandalwood oil sells for around US$1,500 per 1 kilogram (2.2 lb), while Indian Sandalwood oil, due to its higher alpha santalol content, is priced at about US$2,500 per kg.[9]

Sandalwood is often cited as one of the most expensive woods in the world

Use of Sandal wood:: Sandalwood oil has a distinctive soft, warm, smooth, creamy, and milky precious-wood scent. It imparts a long-lasting, woody base to perfumes from the oriental, woody, forger, and chipper families, as well as a fixative to floral and citrus fragrances. When used in smaller proportions in a perfume, it acts as a fixative, enhancing the longevity of other, more volatile, materials in the composite. Sandalwood is also a key ingredient in the “floriental” (floral-ambary) fragrance family – when combined with white floral such as jasmine,  ylang, gardenia, plumier, orange blossom, tuberose, etc.

Sandalwood oil in India is widely used in the cosmetic industry. The main source of true sandalwood, S. album, is a protected species, and demand for it cannot be met. Many species of plants are traded as “sandalwood”. The genus Santalum has more than 19 species. Traders often accept oil from closely related species, as well as from unrelated plants such as West Indian sandalwood (Amyris balsamifera) in the family Rutaceae or bastard sandalwood (Myoporum sandwicense, Myoporaceae). However, most woods from these alternative sources lose their aroma within a few months or years.

Isobornyl cyclohexanol is a synthetic fragrance chemical produced as an alternative to the natural product.

Sandalwood’s main components are the two isomers of santalol (about 75%). It is used in aromatherapy and to prepare soaps.[13]