Argan oil, functional food, and the sustainable development of the argan forest

Abstract

For years, in southwestern Morocco, the decline of the argan forest has been accompanied by the concomitant desert encroachment. Preservation of this forest by increasing the economic value of argan tree was proposed twenty years ago, but successful large scale production of certified, high quality argan oil, an edible oil introduced as a functional food, has only been recently achieved. Argan oil is now marketed in most developed countries, despite its elevated price, and protection of the argan forest is now seriously being considered. The aim of this work is to present the recent progress made in argan oil production, the ways explored to commercialize the oil extraction by-products, and recent attempts to use other argan tree parts as part of a long term aim to preserve the argan forest.