Enterprise Brief: Himalayan Oregano Oil and Sustainable Livelihoods against MRSA

Himalayan Oregano Oil against MRSA has won one of five 2008 SEED Awards for its potential to improve health and its work to provide a sustainable source of income for herb collectors and reduce villagers’ dependency on the collection of endangered herbs, thereby contributing towards conservation of those herbs in their natural habitat.

This partnership aims to provide a sustainable source of income to herb collectors through the collection of wild oregano and distillation of its essential oil. Backed up by strong research, the partners intend to develop a fairtrade product that will use the oregano oil as an antimicrobial agent to prevent the spread of hospitalacquired infections, including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).