Enhancing the value of argan oil is the best mean to sustain the argan grove economy and biodiversity, so far

¹ Laboratoire de chimie des plantes et synthèse organique et bioorganique, Département de Chimie, Faculté des Sciences, Université Mohammed V-Agdal, BP 1014, Rabat, Maroc
² Laboratoire Contrôle Qualité, Lesieur-Cristal, 1, Rue Caporal Corbi, 20300 Roches Noires, Casablanca, Maroc
³ CNRS-UMR 6229, Chime thérapeutique, 51 rue Cognacq-Jay, 51100 Reims, France

^* zcharrouf@menara.ma

Abstract

In Morocco, the region covered with argan trees is named the argan grove. Its long-term preservation depends on the discovery of new and economically rewarding markets to sell argan tree produces. At the present time, the argan oil appears to be the best candidate to fulfill this task. The scientific results that have allowed the emergence of argan oil on the international edible and cosmetic oil markets are reported together with recent analytic results. Alternative approaches, not based on argan oil marketing but also aimed at safeguarding the argan grove, are also reported.