The scent of South Africa: Elephants and Marula Fruit Crafting Luxury Gin
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In the vast plains of South Africa, a remarkable connection between elephants and the scent of ripe marula fruit has played a vital role in creating luxury Amarula Cream Liquors and African Gin.
For generations, the instinctual attraction of elephants to mature marula fruit has guided local communities.
For centuries, elephants have been drawn to the scent of ripened marula fruit across the plains of South Africa (pictured)
As these gentle giants gather under ancient marula trees, a sign that the fruit is ready for harvest, villagers swiftly join in to collect the prized bounty that has fallen during summer.
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These collected marula fruits find their way to Amarula, a South African liquor company. At the Amarula distillery, the fruits are meticulously sorted by locals, predominantly women, and then distilled to produce Amarula Cream Liquors and Amarula African Gin, both acclaimed worldwide.
An elephant stands in front of an ancient marula tree in the Kapama Private Game Reserve
Shuhui Lim, Global Marketing Manager at Amarula, shares that the marula harvest is a cherished annual event for local communities and elephants.
The harvest unites people in a manner akin to fruit picking in other cultures, and it provides a crucial source of income for locals who are compensated for their efforts.
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This harvest holds a limited timeframe, aligning with the short period when marula trees bear fruit – typically between January and February.
Elephants in the Kapama Private Game Reserve in northern South Africa walk toward a watering hole
As elephants, often traveling long distances in their herds, detect the scent of ripened fruit, villagers hurry to gather the marulas for sale at the distillery.
Amarula’s commitment to the environment extends to elephant conservation. The Amarula Trust, established in 2008, collaborates with local groups to safeguard these majestic creatures from habitat changes and poaching.
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One such partner is HERD, South Africa’s pioneering elephant orphanage. This sanctuary rescues and rehabilitates young elephants affected by human conflict and habitat loss.
Men, women, and children rush out of their homes to hand-pick sackfuls of the prized fruit that have dropped on the ground during the summer harvesting season. Pictured: Locals harvesting the marula fruit
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The orphans are eventually integrated into a herd at Kapama Private Game Reserve, adjacent to the orphanage.
Notably, the Amarula brand is on a mission with a clear purpose: to shield elephants, uplift communities, and establish a sustainable future within the marula fruit ecosystem and beyond.
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Generations of families have learned from the elephants’ instincts, and as soon as the animals begin to gather below the ancient marula trees, the locals know the fruit is ready to be harvestedFor centuries, elephants have been drawn to the scent of ripened marula fruit across the plains of South AfricaLocals have for years been able to earn money from their hard work by selling the fruit to Amarula, a liquor company based in South Africa. Pictured: Two women stand on the side of the road before selling the marula fruit they have picked to AmarulaA group of workers loads the bags of marula fruit onto a truck that will head toward the distillery
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Then, bags of marula arrive at the Amarula distillery where locals – mostly women – sort through the fruit (pictured), which is then distilled to eventually create the Amarula Cream Liquors and the Amarula African Gin that are sold around the worldA group of workers sorts through the marula fruit ready to be distilledOnce the Amarula liquor and gin are made, the company employs local communities to make the fabric tassels that wrap around the neck of the bottles. Pictured: The golden tassels wrapped around the Amarula African Gin, which is available in the UK, France, Germany, and PolandThe company set up the Amarula Trust in 2008 with the aim of safeguarding elephants, which are facing changes to their habitats and poachers, by working with local groups. One of these groups is HERD, South Africa’s first dedicated elephant orphanage, which cares for and rehabilitates young elephants. Pictured: Elephants cared for by HERD at a watering hole
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An elephant runs toward a buffalo at a watering hole in the Kapama Private Game ReserveThe orphanage lies adjacent to the Jabulani Herd stables on the Kapama Private Game Reserve in northern South Africa, which allows the charity to integrate each baby elephant into a herd of fellow orphans once they reach a certain age. Pictured: The elephant herd at the watering hole on the private reserveThe HERD Trust has also rescued a rare albino elephant calf named Khanyisa (pictured with a ranger). She was found trapped in a scare set up by poachers in 2020, and it took months for her to be fully rehabilitated
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Those orphaned elephants eventually join the larger herd of elephants, which lumber along the plains, their tails swishing, toward a watering holeThey spend their days roaming and foraging in the wilderness alongside their loyal carers, many of whom are locals, who protect the elephants from predators and poachers
