Sixty percent of the world’s rose oil produced in Isparta

Excerpts from TODAY’S ZAMAN WITH WIRES, ISPARTA.Much of the world’s rose oil, the main ingredient in women’s perfumes, is extracted from roses grown in Isparta. Gardeners in the region grow 7,000 tons of roses each year -- 60 percent of the world’s roses.

Mutfuzade Ismail Efendi first brought the rose to Isparta from Bulgaria in the 1870s. He planted the first rose seed in the Gülcü neighborhood, and the first rose oil was produced in 1892. In 1935, the first modern rose oil workshop was set up in Isparta.Rose oil, primarily extracted from the Rosa Damascena or Damask rose, is still manufactured in the region. Although roses are also grown in China, Iran, Morocco and the Caucasus, these flowers do not have the same quality as the flowers grown in Isparta and Bulgaria. Seven thousand tons of roses are grown each year on a 10,000-hectare field between Isparta and Burdur. Gülbirlik Cooperative General Manager Bolat Tamer said Isparta had taken important steps in rose cultivation in recent years. Founded in 1954 by nine cooperatives, today Gülbirlik is a partner with 8,000 growers and has two rose oil factories and two rose syrup facilities. Tamer noted that 300 tons of roses are processed in these facilities each day to manufacture rose oil, syrup and 100 percent pure rose water -- in accordance with world standards. Rose oil is used to give scent to perfumes but also functions as an adhesive between the skin and the perfume. The most expensive essential oil in the perfume industry is rose oil, “Today, one kilogram of oil is sold for about $4,000 and is extracted from around 3,500 kilograms of rose petals,” Tamer said. “Rose petals can also be processed to make rose syrup, which is thick rose oil, and also used for perfumes and cosmetic products. Since it is relatively cheaper than rose oil, the demand for it increases each year,” Tamer said, adding that one kilogram of rose syrup can be sold for around $400 and is extracted from 350 kilograms of rose petals. Rose water is a byproduct of the rose and is absolutely pure, making it popular for use in facial cleansing products and some sweets. Explaining that they place the rose petals in a modern steam distillation system to make rose water, Tamer highlighted that rose water was an essential ingredient for the perfume and cosmetics industry. There are 10,000 farmers who grow roses in Isparta. While 5,000 of these farmers sell their products to Gülbirlik, the others sell their products to other companies in the region, in particular three French firms. Rose oil Noting that the global perfume and cosmetic industry needs 2,000 to 3,000 kilograms of rose oil each year, Tamer said: “Supply and demand impact the price. Gülbirlik supplies 40 percent of the global rose oil demand while Bulgaria provides another 40 percent. The annual export figure for Gülbirlik is around $4 million. The regional export figure is around $10 million. At least 40,000 people work in this sector.” Rose syrup Noting that the average annual demand for rose syrup in the perfume and cosmetic sector is eight tons, Tamer said: “Morocco supplies around one, Bulgaria two and Turkey supplies nearly four tons of this demand. Gülbirlik produces one ton of rose syrup each year. Other local and foreign companies combined produce three tons.” Tamer’s company began manufacturing custom-made cosmetics in the 1980s. Between 1998 and 2002, they produced eight different cosmetic products, including creams, lotions, shampoo and custom-made soaps. Increasing their product selection to 85, Tamer said they expect their revenue to reach YTL 6 million in the cosmetic sector this year. He highlighted that Gülbirlik has become the leading company in rose oil and syrup production but warned that the increasing rose production in China could eventually pose a threat to the rose production in Isparta.

About Rose

Rosa Damascena

Historic documents of ancient China and Sanskrit, refer to the charming scent of the rose. It is widely known that rose oil and rose water have been used during religious ceremonies since ancient times. The oldest information on the distillation of the rose and rose oil is provided by Ybn Khaldun, the 14th century Arab historian who points out that rose water was among the commodities dispatched to India and China in the 8th century. Although it is known that rose water has been produced and used for centuries, we have only recently become familiar with the production of rose oil. It is said that during the wedding festivities of Nevjihan Sultan, the daughter of the Shah of Iran, the pools in the gardens of the palace were filled with rose water. Nevjihan Sultan is said to have noticed that oil with the scent of roses was accumulating on the water and requested that this oil should be examined, thus initiating the production of rose oil.

According to hearsay, Nurjihan, a Mongol Prince in the 11th century, first discovered rose water and rose oil. It is told that Nurjihan ordered two of the pools in the garden of the palace to be filled with roses instead of water and that after some time he noticed that the water added to the roses in the pools was covered with a slighly oily, pleasant smelling substance. Subsequently, he ordered this substance to be extracted from the water. It is said that rose oil has been known and produced since that time and that in Iran 4.8 gr of rose oil was sold for four gold coins while in India one kilo commanded a price of 1200 gold coins.

It is possible to trace back the origin of rose oil production to Iran from where it spread to India, Algeria, Tunisia, Italy, France and Bulgaria before it finally established itself as an advanced industry in Bulgaria. It is not known exactly when and how the oil rose came to this region and when rose cultivation first started here. Its scientific name leads us to the conclusion that its origin is Damascus. It is assumed that this flower was taken by growers from Damascus and brought to the ecologically suitable Kizanlik region in Bulgaria during the Ottoman period when Damascus and Bulgaria belonged to the Ottoman Empire.

The rose was brought to Turkey for the first time in 1870 by an immigrant and planted in Bursa, Denizli (Çal) and Manisa. However, its cultivation in Isparta was not until 1888 when a local, Muftuzade Ismail Efendi, first brought it back from the Kizanlik region in Bulgaria and planted it in Isparta's Gülcü district. It is thought that the first rose oil production was made by Müftüzade Ismail Efendi in 1892 using primitive distillation cans and methods.

It is known that rose cultivation was highly developed in the Anatolian region until the First World War. In addition to the cities of Isparta, Burdur, Afyon and Denizli in western Anatolia, areas such as Konya and Ankara in Central Anatolia and Sivas and Erzurum in Eastern Anatolia were major rose growing areas.

Rose cultivation was adopted by the people of Isparta and its neighboring regions as a result of the incentives by the government at the time. A book on rose cultivation, published by the Ministry of Trade and Agriculture in 1912, greatly contributed to the development of this industry. Official records reveal that 6.915 thousand square meters of rose gardens were established during that time. Prior to the First World War, rose oil of Turkish origin became very famous in world markets due to its purity and excellence. However, statistics reveal that during the armistice years Turkish rose oil had lost its position against oils of Bulgarian origin and that towards the end of the War of Independence the amount of rose gardens had decreased by 50 percent.

With the founding of Gülbirlik in Isparta in1953, and the establishment of rose oil factories in Yslamköy in 1958 and in Yakaören, Kylyç and Güneykent in 1976 - in addition to the the rose oil solid factory in Aliköy which processes rose flowers grown in the region with cutting-edge technology - Turkish rose oil re-gained its demand in world markets, ultimately leading to the rapid increase in the number of plantations across the region.

Anatolia’s Rose Garden: Isparta

Isparta is a province that placed at the Mediterranean Region, and famous with lakes, roses and rugs. Antic cities, national parks, and caves are places to be seen in province. 

Although roses are harvested in May and June, in Isparta, it is actually rose reason all the time.With its natural and historical wealth, the rose city located in the center of the Lakes district will win your heart, too.

Rosa Damascena (aka: Rose of Isparta)

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The rose is the most meaningful flower, the symbol of love, elegance, and innocence. And its penetrating scent, which works itself so fully into the human body?The scent of the rose is mentioned even in old Turkish, Farsi, Arabic, and Indian sources.

The entire Divan literature is in love with it. In Sufism, it represents metaphorical love. It is a bridge to be crossed to reach divine love, an instrument that prepares the nightingale for true love. It is this rose that is a never-ending season in Isparta.

The people we meet as we enjoy our breakfast in a café tell us that Isparta does not show its beauties openly. They say that a person will fall in love with it as they get to know it better and wander around its streets.

The city turns into a huge rose garden in May and June, though traces of the love felt for roses are evident throughout the year. The fine, pink petals of the Isparta rose – which are turned into dozens of products from Turkish delight to soap, perfume, and lotion – can be found on every corner of the city, perhaps on a young woman’s necklace, on windowsills, in the patterns of tablecloths, or in the colors of Ispartaspor…