Forestwise

What Forestwise does

Forestwise is a Netherlands-headquartered social enterprise founded in 2018 that supplies wild-harvested rainforest ingredients — primarily illipe butter derived from the endangered Shorea stenoptera tree in Borneo, alongside kukui nut oil, virgin coconut oil, buah merah oil, and arenga and coconut flower sugars — to cosmetics and food manufacturers. The company operates a vertically integrated value chain spanning wild harvesting with over 1,000 collectors across 31 villages in West Kalimantan, cold-press processing at its Sintang factory (PT Forestwise Wild Keepers, opened February 2020), and global distribution. Products are certified Fair for Life, Organic (Ecocert NOP/EOS, USDA), COSMOS, Halal, and Forestwise is a B Corp, with third-party validation including an In-Cosmetics Global Green Ingredient Award nomination.

Forestwise makes money primarily through one-time B2B ingredient sales — quote-based pricing on bulk packaging (20 kg jerrycans, 200 kg drums, 10 kg boxes) shipped from Indonesia under FCA Sintang, FOB Jakarta, CFR, and DAP terms. Go-to-market combines direct sales (website quote forms, e-commerce checkout for smaller volumes) with regional distribution partners: DKSH covers Western Europe (Austria, France, Germany, Poland, Nordics/Baltics, Switzerland, Iberia) and OnScent covers the US personal care market. The company also offers prepaid 3-year supply agreements (e.g., ~27,000 EUR for 3,000 kg of illipe butter at ~9 EUR/kg) to hedge the lumpy, triennial illipe harvest cycle. Customers include enterprise cosmetics brand Lush North America (since 2019) and a long tail of indie beauty brands; segments served are cosmetics/personal care and food. The strategic backbone is a non-extractive economic model in which communities earn a 17% income uplift from sustainable harvesting in exchange for forest protection agreements covering 36,000 hectares, with a stated 2030 goal of 500,000 hectares and 10,000 beneficiaries.

The September 2024 first external capital raise from RS Group and Nusa Transformation Ventures is intended to scale forest protection, diversify farmer income, and expand commercial reach — signaling a transition from bootstrapped social enterprise to institutionally backed growth-stage operator. The company has no disclosed AI/ML capability and does not operate as a technology platform; its competitive position rests on community ecosystem lock-in, multi-layered certifications, established distribution partnerships, and brand narrative around rainforest conservation.

Name

Forestwise

Legal name

Forestwise

Website

https://forestwise.earth

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Forestwise supplies wild-harvested rainforest ingredients — primarily illipe butter plus oils and sugars — from Borneo to cosmetics and food manufacturers through direct sales and distribution partners DKSH (Western Europe) and OnScent (US), using a community-based forest protection model with over 1,000 collectors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Botanical Ingredients

NAICS

Forest Nurseries and Gathering of Forest Products (11321), Fats and Oils Refining and Blending (311225), Sugar and Confectionery Product Manufacturing (3113)

SIC

Forestry (800), Fats & Oils (2070)

akta.pro primary industry

Essential Oils & Forest Aromatics Distillation (NTFP-Based) (AFAMAFAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Tropical Oils & Fractions (Palm, Palm Kernel, Coconut) (AFAJALAD), Coconut & Palm Sweeteners (Coconut Sugar, Palm Sugar, Coconut Nectar) (AFAJAAAN)

Keywords

• Wild-harvested cosmetic ingredients
• Sustainable beauty ingredients
• Natural butters oils
• Rainforest-derived raw materials
• Organic cosmetic ingredients

Headquarters

HQ city

Veghel

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. B2B Ingredient Sales: Forestwise sells wild-harvested rainforest ingredients (illipe butter, kukui nut oil, virgin coconut oil, buah merah oil, arenga sugar, coconut flower sugar) to cosmetics and food manufacturers. Products sold in various packaging sizes (20kg jerrycans, 200kg drums, 10kg boxes) with pricing provided via quotes. The company operates through both direct sales and distribution partners.
2. Prepaid Supply Agreements: Illipe nut harvest occurs once every 3 years. Forestwise offers prepaid supply agreements where customers invest 50% upfront to secure product supply for 3-year periods at fixed prices. Example: 3000kg Illipe butter at approximately 27,000 EUR total.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Forestwise supplies wild-harvested rainforest ingredients sourced from Borneo and other Indonesian regions for use in cosmetic/personal care and food applications. The product portfolio centers on three grades of illipe butter (Crude, Decolourised, RBD) plus Buah Merah Oil, Kukui Nut Oil, Virgin Coconut Oil, Coconut Flower Sugar, and Arenga Rainforest Sugar. Products are sold in bulk packaging (20kg jerrycans, 200kg drums, 10kg boxes) primarily to B2B cosmetics and food manufacturers through direct sales and channel partners.

Product overview

Forestwise offers a portfolio of wild-harvested rainforest ingredients for the personal care and food industries. The product line centers on three variants of illipe butter (Organic FFL Illipe Butter RBD, Organic FFL Illipe Butter Crude, and FFL Illipe Butter Decolourised) derived from Shorea stenoptera trees in Borneo, complemented by Buah Merah Oil from Papua, Kukui Nut Oil, Virgin Coconut Oil, Coconut Flower Sugar, and Arenga Rainforest Sugar. Products are certified organic, Fair for Life, COSMOS, and Halal, and are sold directly to manufacturers in the cosmetics and food industries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Organic FFL Illipe Butter RBD Refined, Deodourised and Decolourised illipe butter made from Organic FFL Illipe Butter Crude, refined in a certified organic refinery and completely odourless so that it does not affect product fragrance or color. Certified by Ecocert according to Fair for Life and organic (NOP and EOS) standards. Sold to cosmetics and personal care manufacturers.
• Organic FFL Illipe Butter Crude Illipe Butter (Shorea Stenoptera Butter or tengkawang fat) made from the nuts of the endangered Shorea stenoptera tree, which only grows in the forests of Borneo and Sumatra. Wild harvested, cold-pressed and vacuum filtered. Certified by Ecocert according to Fair for Life and organic (NOP and EOS) standards. Sold to cosmetics and personal care manufacturers.
• FFL Illipe Butter Decolourised Illipe butter made from FFL Illipe Butter Crude with the colour removed, for applications where the natural colour of illipe butter would alter the product's appearance. Cold-pressed, vacuum filtered, mixed with activated earth and filtered through a three-way filter system. Certified by Ecocert according to Fair for Life standard.
• COSMOS Buah Merah Oil Oil extracted from Buah Merah (Pandanus Conoideus) fruit native to Papua, Indonesia, containing one of the highest antioxidant levels in the plant world (69,500 ORAC). Rich in antioxidants, beta carotene, alpha tocopherol and Omega 3, 6 & 9. COSMOS certified. Sold to cosmetics and personal care manufacturers.
• Organic FFL Kukui Nut Oil Oil from Aleurites Moluccanus seeds (Kukui or Kemiri nuts) containing essential fatty acids, functioning as an excellent moisturiser and emollient. Traditionally used in Indonesia to protect skin and hair. Harvested from forest, sun dried, cold pressed. Certified by Ecocert according to organic (NOP and EOS) standards.
• Organic Virgin Coconut Oil Virgin Coconut Oil from Coco Nucifera species, harvested directly from the tree before aging. Produced via cold pressing and fermentation process. Supporting small-scale farmers in Bitung, North Sulawesi (production facility with 80 workers). Also available as non-organic/conventional. Sold to both cosmetics/personal care and food manufacturers.
• Organic Coconut Flower Sugar Dark-brown sugar harvested from coconut palm flowers through evaporation, cooking and dehydration. Hand-made artisanal product used as a healthier alternative to white cane sugar. Also functions as a gentle exfoliating agent in personal care formulations. Sold to food manufacturers and personal care brands.
• Organic Arenga Rainforest Sugar Creamy, dark-brown sugar harvested from Arenga Pinnata tree, featuring a delicious caramel aftertaste. Produced from pure sugary juice tapped from flower stalk through evaporation, cooking and dehydration. Contains 50 times more minerals than white sugar, three times more potassium than bananas. Shelf life of 3 years. Sold to food manufacturers.

Quantifiable outcome

• 17% increase in annual income for illipe nut collectors
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• TerrataiminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 26 September 2024Terratai helped introduce the RS Group investment opportunity to Forestwise and supported due diligence and investment structuring. Also facilitates market connections for nature-based ventures.
• OnScentcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 14 December 2022OnScent in New Jersey, USA, signed agreement to develop Forestwise's range of sustainably sourced rainforest oils, butters and sugars into the US personal care market. Partnership announced December 2022.
• DKSHcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 27 July 2021DKSH provides sales, marketing, logistics, and distribution for Forestwise products in key Western European markets including Austria, France, Germany, Poland, The Nordics and Baltic States, Switzerland, and the Iberian Peninsula. Partnership announced July 2021.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• IOI Oleo: IOI Oleo is a specialty oleochemicals manufacturer producing MCT oils, specialty fats, and personal care emollients. It serves overlapping cosmetic and food customers with broader scale, providing a competing source of plant-derived oils and fats.
• Bunge Limited: Bunge is a global agribusiness and food ingredients company with oilseed processing capabilities and a presence in tropical oils (including palm). It serves as a broad incumbent alternative in fats/oils supply, though it lacks Forestwise's wild-harvested, conservation-based positioning.
• Evonik Industries: Evonik's Care Solutions business supplies specialty ingredients for cosmetics and personal care, including natural-derived emollients and active ingredients. It competes with Forestwise for formulators seeking high-performance, sustainably-positioned personal care ingredients.
• Croda International: Croda is a major specialty ingredients supplier serving personal care, with a broad portfolio of natural and botanical-derived emollients, actives, and butters. It competes for the same cosmetic formulator wallets as Forestwise but at much greater scale and with a wider product range.
• BASF (Care Chemicals division): BASF's Care Chemicals segment supplies a comprehensive range of ingredients to the personal care industry, including natural oils, butters, and botanical extracts. It is a broad incumbent alternative for formulators evaluating specialty rainforest-derived ingredients.

Direct peers

• Floratech (a Cargill brand): Floratech supplies naturally-derived emollients, exfoliants, and specialty ingredients for personal care from plant sources. It competes with Forestwise in the natural cosmetic ingredients segment with comparable sustainability-focused positioning.
• Sophim: Sophim is a French manufacturer of natural cosmetic ingredients derived from plant oils, including shea-based and other specialty butters for personal care. It is a focused natural-ingredients peer serving the same cosmetic formulator customer base.
• Laboratoires Expanscience: Laboratoires Expanscience develops and supplies plant-based active and inactive cosmetic ingredients, including sustainably-sourced butters and oils. It is comparable to Forestwise as a mid-sized, sustainability-led specialty ingredients supplier serving personal care brands.
• AAK (AarhusKarlshamn): AAK is a leading global supplier of specialty oils and fats, including shea, cocoa butter equivalents, and illipe butter, serving personal care and food customers. Like Forestwise, AAK operates a vertically integrated supply chain focused on plant-based butters and oils with sustainability credentials, making it the closest scaled comparator in the specialty butter category.

Emerging players

• Natural Sourcing (specialty natural ingredients supplier): Natural Sourcing is a smaller US-based distributor/supplier of specialty natural oils, butters, and botanical ingredients for personal care formulators. While not wild-harvested, it competes for the same indie and SMB cosmetic brand customers that Forestwise serves via direct and small-quantity channels.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/forestwise3
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/forestwise
• Instagraminstagram.com/forestwise.earth

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Forestwise