Aruba Aloe Factory
The Aruba Aloe Factory , based in Hato , east of Tanki Leendert, is one of the oldest companies still in existence on the island of Aruba .
history
In 1890 the company was founded by the aloe plantation operator Cornelius Eman as Aruba Aloe Balm NV and is still family-owned to this day. The plantation then had an area of 150 hectares. Aloes were grown and processed on two thirds of the island's area in the 1920s. At that time it was the main livelihood of the rural population on the island. Aloe vera cultivation is Aruba's first source of wealth after Aruba's gold mining era.
The company label “World's Finest Aloe® Since 1890” is under trademark protection. The Aruba Aloe Factory operates 15 branches on the island alone, its own large, island-wide aloe fields and an aloe museum in Hato on the factory premises. In addition, the Aruba Aloe Factory exports its products worldwide.
Trivia
The museum and the factory with aloe cutting room, storage room and test laboratory can be visited with free admission. A short historical walking tour tells a visual story of the domestication of the aloe plant in Aruba, which was so important that the island was also called Aloe Island. The tours are conducted in English, Dutch, Spanish and Papiamento (native to Aruba). The museum and sales room are also open on Sundays, but there are no guided tours on this day.
Products
(Abstract)
- Medical gel cream, brand name Alhydran
- Aloe face and skin care products
- Aloe sunscreen
- Hair care
The age-old natural remedy has achieved great fame for several years. Many medical and cosmetic products now contain extracts from the aloes.
Economical meaning
Aloe has been grown in Aruba since the mid-1800s. The climate and the dry earth are particularly suitable for the aloe culture. The Aruba Aloe plant has an aloin content of around 22%, while the aloin content in the rest of the world is around 15%. At the beginning of 1900 the first steam-powered cooking system was installed by the French Louis Bazin.
In the 19th century, Aruba was the main supplier of aloin resin, which was mainly used to make laxatives. The resin contains the glycoside aloin. This effect is scientifically proven and has been approved as a medicinal product. The plant Aloe socotrina is used to produce the medicinal product “Aloe” .
The aloin was exported abroad. Aruba's share of exports in the total world market of aloe vera resin was more than 90% at that time, before the arrival of the oil industry, aloe represented a reasonable source of income, especially for the small "cunucero" (farmers). The arrival of the oil industry had a huge impact on the labor market in Aruba and the aloe culture took a back seat. Aloe culture was only resumed after the Second World War. In 1951, Aruba Aloe production was again around 30% of total world production.
Web links
- Homepage Aruba Aloe Factory
- The Aruba Aloe Museum & Factory on visitaruba.com (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Aruba Aloe Factory on aruba.com
- ^ Museum website
- ↑ Alhydran on alhydran.nl
- ↑ Historia di Aruba Aloe on historiadiaruba.aw