The incredible scent that elephants can’t forget! How the gentle giants of South Africa and their love of fruit play a vital role in making luxury GIN
- Elephants have for centuries been drawn to smell of ripened marula fruit
- Generations of South Africans learned that this is sign fruit is ready to be picked
For centuries, elephants have been drawn to the scent of ripened marula fruit across the plains of South Africa.
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 harvested.
Men, woman 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.
Locals 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.
Then, as bags of marula arrive at the Amarula distillery, locals – mostly women – sort through the fruit. It is then distilled to eventually create the Amarula Cream Liquors and the Amarula African Gin that are sold around the world.
An elephant stands in front of an ancient marula tree in the Kapama Private Game Reserve
For centuries, elephants have been drawn to the scent of ripened marula fruit across the plains of South Africa (pictured)
Elephants in the Kapama Private Game Reserve in northern South Africa walk towards a watering hole
Men, woman 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
‘The marula harvest is one of the highlights of the year for local communities – and elephants,’ Shuhui Lim, Global Marketing Manager at Amarula, tells MailOnline.
‘It brings everyone together – and has done for centuries – in a very special way – much like we enjoy blackberry and fruit picking in the UK.’
‘It’s also a lifeline for locals as we pay them for their efforts,’ Lim adds.
Indeed, one 72-year-old grandmother who has harvested marula since she was a child said that the money she has earned from selling the fruit has helped her feed her family.
‘It’s hard work, but it’s a good living during the harvest. I’m able to buy food for my family,’ she tells MailOnline from a collection point where men are loading sacks of marula onto a truck that is heading to the distillery.
There is only a short window of time that the fruit can be picked from the marula trees, which cannot be cultivated and grow only where they choose.
Only once a year – usually between January and February – do the ancient trees bear the fruit.
This means that as soon as the elephants arrive after smelling the ripened fruit – some travelling vast distances in their herds – the locals quickly run into the fields to collect marulas and sell it to the distillery.
Once the Amarula liquor and gin is made, the company employs local communities to make the fabric tassels that wrap around the neck of the bottles.
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 harvested
For centuries, elephants have been drawn to the scent of ripened marula fruit across the plains of South Africa
Locals 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 Amarula
A group of workers load the bags of marula fruit onto a truck that will head towards the distillery
Then, as 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 world
A group of workers sort through the marula fruit ready to be distilled
Once the Amarula liquor and gin is 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 Poland
These ‘tassel sisters’, from the Handwork Hub, have made more than 40 million tassels for the neck of the bottles of Amarula since its incorporation in 2017.
Those tassels are seen on Amarula Cream liqueur bottles, which are sold across 100 countries, as well as the Amarula African Gin, which has been launched in the UK, France, Germany and Poland.
Lim says that Amarula is also passionate about elephant conservation and protecting the animals from poachers – especially given how integral elephants are in letting communities know the marula fruit is ready to be picked.
The 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 the young elephants.
The orphanage has seen a rise in elephants falling victim to human conflict due to the increasing threats of poaching and loss of habitat.
The 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 the young elephants. Pictured: Elephants cared for by HERD at a watering hole
An elephant runs towards a buffalo at a watering hole in the Kapama Private Game Reserve
An elephant drinks water at a watering hole in the Kapama Private Game Reserve
The 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 reserve
The 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.
The charity has rescued 11 orphaned elephants – the first of which was an elephant now called Jabulani. He was found at four-months-old stuck in a silt dam and it took a year to nurse him back to health.
The young elephant eventually joined a herd of elephants that the charity rescued from certain death in Zimbabwe.
The HERD Trust has also rescued a rare albino elephant calf named Khanyisa. She was found trapped in a scare, set up by poachers, in 2020 and it took months for her to be fully rehabilitated.
Those orphaned elephants eventually join the larger herd of elephants, which lumber along the plains, their tails swishing, towards a watering hole.
They 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.
The 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
Those orphaned elephants eventually join the larger herd of elephants, which lumber along the plains, their tails swishing, towards a watering hole
They 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
As dusk falls, the carers eventually guide the elephants towards the HERD Homestead and Orphanage on the private and protected Kapama Private Game Reserve.
The elephants sleep at the homestead as the herd is made up of rescued animals or orphans – meaning they need extra protection from human poachers and predators at night.
‘Amarula is a brand with real purpose doing everything it can to protect the elephants, strengthen communities and build a sustainable future within the marula fruit ecosystem and beyond,’ says Lim.
‘This commitment is demonstrated through the Amarula Trust which supports multiple organisations and initiatives framed under the following three pillars: elephant conservation, empowering people and strengthening communities.’
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