The identification of safrole-rich Piper hispidinervium was an early success of the Goeldi Museum's (MPEG) screening programme of aromatic plants of the Amazon. The common name for the plant Piper hispidinervium is Pimenta Longa. Safrole is a naturally occurring aromatic compound which is employed by chemical industries as a starting material for the manufacture of heliotropin - an important perfumery fixative - and piperonyl butoxide (PBO) - used as a synergist for natural insecticides such as pyrethrum.

The annual world consumption of safrole is over 2,000 tonnes. This requirement is met entirely by the steam distillation of plant materials and is collectively known as "sassafras oil". The sassafras industry is currently based on the destructive harvesting of wild forest trees of the Lauaceae family and has been traditionally carried out in southern Brazil, China and Vietnam. There is concern about the sustainability of this production and about conservation issues in all three countries. Industry consumers are also worried about the long-term availability of natural safrole.

Certain species of the Piperaceae family contain safrole-rich essential oils in their leaves and are, therefore, prospective, alternative, environmentally friendly, sources of sassafras oil. The Piper sub-project of the Brazil-UK Technical Co-operation Project: Aromatic Plant Development Project, Para was set up to evaluate their potential for economic exploitation. In the first phase of the project it was demonstrated that Piper hispidinervium was a potentially feasible source of safrole.

Prove the economic and social viability of safrole oil production through pilot commercial activities with small rural producers (to demonstrate routes to sustainable natural resources management in the Amazon).

• Piper adopted by farmers in a sustainable and commercially viable farming system.
• Determination of the agronomic parameters for piper cultivation to increase safrole production per ha/yr.
• Define the processing parameters (including drying and distillation) for smallholder commercial production of safrole-rich piper oil.
• Establish commercial arrangements for marketing of piper oil, directly linking smallholder communities with buyers.
• Financial analysts of commercial feasibility of piper oil production.
• Farmers trained in the commercial production, processing and marketing of piper oil.
• Research institutions strengthened in participatory methods through involvement in project cycle through diagnosis to on-farm research, technology uptake and commercial development.