Are Essential Oils the Greenest Option?

March 27, 2026

You know how natural is always better? Except that sometimes it isn't? Turns out this is called the appeal to nature (or also the naturalistic fallacy) and I have definitely fallen victim to it a time or two. It occurred to me recently that I had never really done the research to support using only essential oils in my products. I know my customers want it and natural plant extracts certainly seem far superior to manufactured chemicals on a gut level but is this really the case?

Do you want the TL:DR right now? The answer is that mostly I think essential oils are better for us and for the environment but that depends hugely on which essential oils you choose and which environmental factors you find most important. It was certainly a much closer race than I initially expected. Let's get into the details!

Production Impacts

How Fragrance Oils Are Made

As you may have already know, fragrance oils are made from synthetic molecules, many of which are made from fossil fuels. Beyond that, it's hard to make generalized statements about how all fragrance oils are made because of the wide variety of molecules involved. Even single molecules can have a variety of different production methods, some greener than others.

Let's take the example of vanilla. Real vanilla can be expensive and cannot be made into a typical essential oil (since it can't be steam distilled or mechanically pressed, it must be made with a solvent, like alcohol). It is also in big demand by the food industry. There is a far higher demand for vanilla as a flavoring and scent than can be met by natural production, only 1% of world vanilla use is met by natural means.

This is mostly because vanilla is very low yield crop that is labor intensive to grow and harvest. The vines don't produce usable pods until they are about 4 years old and each flower must be hand pollinated. The plants are also very particular about shade, temperature and humidity levels. Harvesting is a several step process that involves, soaking, sweating and drying the beans. The climate zone that can support vanilla production is also quite small, which is why you only hear of vanilla coming from a few specific tropical places such as Madagascar and Indonesia. This would make it hard to expand vanilla production enough to even come close to meeting world demand.

Enter fake vanilla to fill the gap. Manufactured vanillin is a pretty close flavor and scent match for real vanilla and can be produced at a high volume without the restrictions of an agricultural product. However, about 85 to 90% of the world's supply is derived from petrochemicals. The other 10 or so percent comes from a single company in Norway, Borregaard, that still makes vanillin from lingin from wood pulp. The wood pulp method was originally a way to make use of pulp factory waste but as these pulp mills tightened up production methods to reduce waste, the raw materials for this method disappeared, making petrochemical derived vanillin more attractive. Borregaard stuck with this process and refined it to make it more efficient.

Pretty much every individual scent you can imagine has a story something like this. There is a natural option, which varies in environmental sustainability but then there is more demand than can be met by natural means. To meet that demand a synthetic method of production is developed but that also varies in its environmental impact. You can see why it's hard to make a blanket statement about whether fragrance oils or essential oils are better! But now let's have a look at how essential oils are made.

How Essential Oils Are Made

Essential oils are largely produced through steam distillation method (citrus oils are mechanically pressed, but this is unique to them), which involves boiling water and large amounts of plant material in order to capture volatile compounds. How much plant material is required varies widely depending on the plant with the more expensive oils often requiring more plant material. Rose oil for example requires 10,000 lbs of rose petals to make a single pound of essential oil and can be 10-20 times more expensive than the more affordable lavender, which requires a still somewhat staggering 250 lbs of material to make one pound of oil.

The steam distillation process is very energy and water intensive, since large amounts of water must be heated during the process. In an effort to reduce water use, some companies are developing filtration systems that allows them to clean and reuse their wastewater but these systems are far from universal.

Many oils are made with cultivated plants, which means that large amounts of farmland must be dedicated to growing these plants. (Citrus is again an interesting exception, since oils like orange and lemon are typically made with waste peels, so sustainability points for team citrus.) Other oils are still harvested from wild plants, which presents the issue of over harvesting. Sandalwood, for example, is extracted from the wood of an endangered tree. High demand for the oil plus a long maturation time for the tree (30-60 years!) means that sandalwood oil is expensive and hard to find from a sustainable source.

In a world where the use of land for agriculture is a big driver in the loss of wildlife habitat and biodiversity, can we really say without question that dedicating thousands of acres to growing plants purely for essential oils is really our best option? Many essential oil crops are also facing issues related to climate change and water use. The historical rose producing valleys in Bulgaria, for example have been struck recently with late frosts and summer droughts that reduced their rose oil production by half in 2025, their worst year in 30 years.

In fact, if we look purely at the energy and land use of the production side, I'd say fragrance oils edge out essential oils from a sustainability perspective, especially since consumer pressure is driving fragrance manufacturers to seek production methods that don't utilize fossil fuels. But production is far from the only aspect we need to look at.

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)

We're all probably used to hearing about vehicle emissions as the main source of air pollution, particularly the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are bad for the lungs. But as car and truck exhaust gets cleaner, there's another source of air pollution that is becoming more obvious: everyday consumer products.

A study from 2018 found that as much as half of urban air pollution was coming from VOCs from consumer products, which includes paints, pesticides, household cleaners and personal care products. Not only are VOCs directly irritating to the lungs but they react in sunlight to create ozone. Ozone exposure can cause short-term breathing issues and long term exposure can cause respiratory illness, metabolic disorders and nervous system issues amongst other problems.

Fragrance oils are by far the worse offender here, which is exactly why they are often preferred in personal care products, household cleaners and air fresheners. Essential oils don't smell as strong and their scent fades quickly, while fragrance oils have a powerful long lasting scent due to emitting more VOCs for longer.

Essential oils aren't entirely exempt from the negative health effects of VOCs, however. Many people who are sensitive to fragrances are also sensitive to essential oils and the American Lung Association recommends using caution before using aromatherapy diffusers, especially for those with preexisting breathing problems like asthma.

This is not to say that we can now forget about VOC emissions from cars and factories. Indeed, if take the wider view (rather than just urban air quality in Los Angeles as in the UC Davis article), oil refineries and the transportation sector still contribute hugely to global pollution, including VOCs. Indeed, I think this VOC emission study would look very different if it had been done in, for example, Pittsburgh, PA, where the Clariton Steel Works has been the largest local source of pollution in recent years. The explosion at the plant in August 2025 drew national attention to the company's history of violating EPA emissions restrictions on a regular basis.

It's a fine balance between focusing on things you can change personally (using fewer fragranced products) and not using that personal focus to let big industrial polluters off the hook.

Allergies and Skin Sensitivities

You may hear "clean beauty" influencers lament that ingredient names like "parfum" or "fragrance" are misleading because of their ability to hide exactly what scent is in the product and that you should look for products that only contain essential oils. Unfortunately for those with skin allergies, essential oils have plenty to hide too. If you experience contact dermatitis from scented products, it's likely caused by a sensitivity to particular elements of scent that can be present in both fragrance oils and essential oils.

When a fragrance oil is synthesized, chemists look to create scent molecules from either natural or synthetic sources and then blend those molecules in ratios that match the natural scent. This means that if, for example, limonene is a part of lavender essential oil, it will also be part of a lavender fragrance oil, although the source may be synthetic rather than natural. To your skin, it doesn't matter how this molecule is made, it can still cause a reaction! But limonene isn't listed as a separate ingredient on my lavender scented soap any more than it is listed on a product that contains it within its "fragrance".

The good news is that limonene, linalool and some other common fragrance allergens are already required to be on product labels in the EU and UK (whether they come from natural or synthetic sources) and US labeling requirements may soon be changing to match. (Maybe I just found my next project: updating labels!)

Another downside of essential oils is that since they are a natural product, the exact ratios of scent molecules can vary from harvest to harvest based on weather conditions, harvest timing and handling during processing. For those with allergies it can mean that a component of an essential oil that was previously too weak to cause a reaction may be present in greater amounts in the following year's harvest and so now you suddenly find yourself having a reaction to a product that has always been trouble free in the past!

Other Environmental Effects

If it seems like I'm being a little harsh on essential oils, there's a reason for that! I think we are subject to that all too human failing: seeing things in black and white. Those focused on natural ingredients will tell you all about the dangers of fragrance oils and offer essential oils as the perfect substitute while others prefer to downplay the negative effects of fragrances altogether. The truth, as usual, lies somewhere in between.

Both fragrances and essential oils pose environmental risks. They are extremely flammable and should be treated as household hazardous waste, likewise empty containers must be thoroughly cleaned before disposal. These oils should never be poured down the drain as they can have toxic effects on water supplies and aquatic ecosystems.

As with any kind of manufacturing, both essential oils and fragrance oils use resources to be produced. Certain fragrance oil molecules like galaxolide are especially persistant in the environment and don't seem to break down. Galaxolide has been found in increasing quantities in water samples from the Great Lakes.

However, as more and more people turn to essential oils instead of fragrance oils, how responsible is it to increase land use to meet this demand? Would that effort go to better use cleaning up the synthetic fragrance industry and restricting the production of the most environmentally concerning compounds?

At the same time, the levels of VOCs from fragrance oils in particular is very concerning for environmental and human health. Encouraging the use of more unscented products could go a long way towards reducing these harmful compounds in the air we breathe. After all, scented products are a luxury!

Pets

If you have pets, use essential oils and fragrance oils with extreme care, as both types of scents can be very dangerous for them. Different species have different tolerances and sensitivities. Birds, for example, have very delicate respiratory systems and should not be exposed to scented oils in a diffuser. Never use essential oils topically on any pet but cats are especially vulnerable.

Conclusion

So I won't be switching over to fragrance oils anytime soon but I will be reexamining my selection of essential oils to make sure I stay away from the more environmentally problematic ones. I can already tell you that frankincense and myrrh are on the chopping block. While it's possible to get these essential oils from certified sustainable sources, it is so expensive that I would have to double the price of the products containing it, which I don't think is a great option. My products have always been about the fats, not the scents after all!

A large part of my business has always been unscented products and that is the type of product that I typically gravitate towards myself. Now I know that the unscented option is not only better for sensitive skin and lungs but for the environment as well.

Lots of sources in this one, thanks for sticking with me! Or, if you just skipped to the bottom, feel free to browse the source link rather than read my ramblings :)

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Estimated total

Are Essential Oils the Greenest Option?

Production Impacts

How Fragrance Oils Are Made

How Essential Oils Are Made

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)

Allergies and Skin Sensitivities

Other Environmental Effects

Pets

Conclusion

Sources:

Vanilla Production

Essential Oils

Air Pollution

Health and Environment

Pets

Conclusion

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