Dutjahn Sandalwood Oils

Dutjahn Sandalwood Oils (DSO) is a sandalwood oil distillation company backed by Dutjahn Custodians, Kutkabbuba Aboriginal Corporation and the founders of WA Sandalwood Plantations. Unique to the sandalwood industry, DSO, is a 50% indigenous owned company, that is focussed on reinvigorating Indigenous Certification and creating an inclusive industry. DSO's equity partners are Perth businessmen Keith Drage and Ron Mulder who founded WA Sandalwood Plantations in 2001. They have built a debt free structure that manages over 13,000 hectares of spicatum plantations providing vital mitigation of salinity and other key environmental benefits to regional Australia. WA Sandalwood Plantations pioneering efforts and dedication to Australian sandalwood has resulted in the creation of the world’s largest sustainable spicatum plantation resource that compliments the vast and pristine central desert Dutjahn (sandalwood) forests that have recently been awarded to the Indigenous Central desert people under Native Title Rights. Dutjahn is the Martu word for this sacred native sandalwood tree. Ken Farmer (deceased), a first contact Martu Aboriginal man who first came out of the Gibson Desert as a young man in the 1950’s, began harvesting sandalwood from the Gibson Desert in the year of his son Clinton farmer was born. He inspired a generation of second contact Indigenous leaders, including Clinton Farmer of the Kutkabbuba Aboriginal Corporation, to pursue his vision resulting in the formation of the Dutjahn Custodians and the K Farmer Dutjahn Foundation. The creation of DSO is important on many regional economic, social and environmental fronts and most importantly providing the Indigenous community a significant role in the future of the sandalwood industry.