Trip to Colombia 2019

This winter I escaped to Colombia and went on another adventure to find some incredible ingredients. We (my husband & I) travelled on his Honda 125 to the Putumayo region in the south, which is hot and tropical, although the journey there ranged from a nippy, cold, wet climate over the top of the paramount to the heavy, humid heat of the jungle.

We visited Olver and Doña Silvia at a very small cooperative which he began in 2008. He helps and teaches local people how to grow the sacha inchi organically without destroying trees. All the families involved are visited regularly, and none of them has more than a hectare of land. When people are sick, Olver and his small team go to help harvest the crop, which is every 13 days.

It's a beautiful star-shaped fruit with 4-6 pods on; these are collected and dried, then the outer pod is removed to reveal the almond-shaped nuts full of incredible properties.

• An incredible oil which consists of Omega 3 (48%), Omega 6(35%), Omega 9 (9%), antioxidants, proteins and is abundant in Vitamins A & E. Sacha Inchi is the richest plant source of omega 3 fatty acid in the world 48% (fish oils contain 22-33%). Also high in phytosterols, which are compounds that stimulate pore detoxification and strengthen the skin's natural lipid barrier. This makes it an interesting ingredient for natural skin products and organic skin products, particularly for those looking for more conscious skincare.

These almond-shaped nuts can be toasted and eaten as a snack oppressed to produce a beautiful oil that can be taken internally or used externally.

What impressed me most was the kindness; Olver is not a businessman; he's an agronomist, conservationist and cares deeply about the land and people in a region that has seen years of war and bloodshed. He guarantees the people the same price/kg throughout the year, and having spoken to a number of them that we visited they were all extremely happy when he arrived and explained to us how grateful they were to him for the opportunity to make a living.

So we arranged to have some of the golden wonder oil sent back as carrying it on a small motorbike wasn't an option. I think next time I will take a memory foam pillow to sit on!!

For me, this is what conscious skincare Wales is all about - discovering incredible natural ingredients while understanding where they come from and the people and land behind them.

Please see their brand-new website that went live this month, below.

www.sachainchiputumayo.com