Why Is Wild Agarwood Protected Under International Trade Law?

Wild agarwood-producing trees are protected under CITES, the international treaty regulating trade in endangered species, because decades of high demand for natural oud led to significant overharvesting of wild Aquilaria trees across their native range, pushing several species toward genuine conservation concern.

How the protections actually work

Aquilaria species, the trees that produce agarwood when naturally or artificially infected, are listed under CITES Appendix II, meaning international trade in wild-harvested material requires permits and documentation to ensure it isn’t contributing to unsustainable population decline. This regulation emerged directly from the reality that wild oud, discussed further in our related answer on the difference between wild and plantation oud, takes many years to form naturally and can’t be harvested at the pace global demand has historically required without seriously depleting wild populations.

This is a major reason the industry has shifted so heavily toward sustainably managed plantation cultivation, which isn’t subject to the same restrictions since it doesn’t threaten wild populations. Reputable oud suppliers should be able to speak to where their material comes from and how it complies with these rules. Our complete guide to oud covers sourcing and sustainability properly, and the complete guide to perfume has wider context on ingredient sourcing. These protections have genuinely reshaped the industry over the past few decades, pushing serious investment into sustainable cultivation rather than reliance on wild harvesting.