These candles are made from the pods of the Brazil Nut tree, one of the tallest trees in the Amazon Rain Forest. Once the Brazil nuts have been harvested from the pod and sold in the local Peruvian market, the artisans transform a "waste" item, the pod, into a fine rain forest gift for you. The pods are filled with a combination of clean-burning paraffin wax, palm oil and fragrance to make these exotic-scented candles.

We are at a time in the history of this world where global warming is destroying the planet, and the need to preserve the rainforest is of extreme importance. The Brazil Nut tree only produces fruit in undisturbed forests. These candles are part of an initiative to protect more than 200,000 hectares of the Amazon Rainforest, and in addition provides support to more than 400 Amazon nut gatherers and their familes.

Available in a variety of colors and fragrances, these earth-friendly candles make use of the rain forest's renewable resources and create jobs for Peruvian artisans.

• Measures 2-1/4" to 2-3/4" high with a 4" to 4 1/2" diameter
• Lead-free wicks
• Exotic Scented collection includes:

                Cinnamon, Coconut, Eucalyptus, Lavender,
                Red Wine, Sandalwood and Vanilla

Handmade in Peru and Fair Trade imported.

The tremendous Brazil nut tree can have a trunk that can be grow to be 8 feet in diameter and can live up to 500 years. The tree has branches and leaves only at the top third of the tree, and its branches can span up to 100 feet. The waxy leaves produce a yellow orchid. This flower, when pollinated by either bees or bats, produces the fruit that contains the brazil nuts.

In South America, brazil nuts grow during the 4-month dry season that differs from region to region. The brazil nut is a hard-shelled fruit, similar to a coconut, and takes about 14 months to mature. The fruit is about 4-6 inches in diameter and can weigh up to four pounds. The shell of the fruit is about a quarter of an inch thick and contain between 12-24 nuts.

Brazil nuts are primarily harvested from wild trees during the six-month period of the rainy season. Because the brazil nut trees are so tall, harvesting the fruits consists of gathering the fruit after they fall. Once the fruit falls, it has to be gathered quickly so they are not susceptible to fungus and animals that can carry them away.

For more information on how Brazil Nuts are saving the Rainforest, see this fun video Super Nut.

Madre de Dios, a mountainous area of pristine forests, is one of the poorest regions of Peru. The most lucrative industry here is the collection and processing of the Amazon (Brazil) nut into oils, candy and candles for export. Unfortunately, few producers are informed or rewarded for extracting the oil in a sustainable manner meaning the region's rates of rainforest destruction are almost as high as its poverty. 

Candela Peru is an alternative biotrade organization which began acting as a fair trade business in the brazil nut industry in 1989 in order to improve circumstances for this region of Peru.

Candela Peru, an acronym for "Comercio Alternativo de Productos No Tradicionales y Desarrollo para Latino América" (in English: Alternative Trade of Non Traditional Products and Development for Latin America), works with 266 Peruvian farmers in this part of the Amazon rainforest to harvest the Brazil nut in a socially and environmentally-responsible manner.

Besides creating steady work for rural families, the company helps small producers streamline their production chains for increased capacity and helps them to implement social and environmental projects in their area. In this way, Candela Peru helps improve farmers way of living and promotes forest conservation in a biologically diverse region.

Candela Peru developed an Organic Certification program in 2001 to include Peruvian Brazil nuts in the growing organic market, and works with local producers to obtain their organic certification. The company also hosts classes in forest management to educate farmers on how sustainable forestry practices can offer financial reward.