About Us



18 Herbs Organics is a Madurai, South India, based wellness company focusing on research, development and manufacturing of organic health and beauty products. All our products are eco-friendly and sustainable by design. We choose our herbs from either our own organic farms or certified organic farms that are under our strict supervision.

 

At 18 Herbs, we reject factory-based farming in favour of organic and sustainable practices whose goal is to leave the earth better than when we found it. We work with a network of small farmers across South India, all committed to growing the highest-quality, natural, non-GMO fruits and herbs that are healthy and do not harm our consumers. We are against animal testing, use of chemicals and synthetic preservatives.

 

The Siddha system of medicine is one among the oldest Indian medical systems, perhaps even older than Ayurveda. It is principally practiced in Kerala and Tamil Nadu (Southern provinces of India).

 

Principles of the Siddha medicine are very similar to Ayurveda; and both emphasize that all living and nonliving things in the universe are made up of five cosmic elements or maha bhoothas. These five elements of ether (Akash), air (Vayu), water (Jala), fire (Tejas) and earth (Prithvi) are the building blocks of all material existence. Respectively, they are related to the five senses of sound, touch, sight, taste and smell.

 

The three mind/body types or constitutions namely vata, pitta and kapha come from combinations of the Five Elements, as follows:

 

Vata is a combination of ether and air – rhythmic intelligent movement.

 

Pitta is a combination of fire and water – the ability to receive and transform.

 

Kapha is a combination of earth and water – cohesiveness, grounding and rejuvenation.

 

A healthy body is one, where these are in equilibrium. Disease results from an imbalance in these elements. A Siddha practitioner (Vaidya) determines the health of an individual by pulse diagnosis. An experienced Siddha Vaidya can detect the imbalance in the doshas by reading the pulse of an individual and accordingly prescribes medicines to correct the imbalance. Siddha formulations make extensive use of herbs, minerals and metals in their non-toxic forms.

 

It is believed that 18 principal Siddhars who founded the Siddha system of medicine thus inspiring our organisations’ name. The team at 18 Herbs strongly believes in the foundations of these traditional health systems and tries to revive them with the help of modern science to benefit the modern consumer.

 


About Our Logo

 The 18 Herbs Logo was designed to showcase the many facets of life the company embodies. The leaves represent the medicinal herbs and their healing powers handed down by the ancient Siddha system.

 

The company name itself is inspired from the fact that, originally, 18 important ‘Siddhars’ (medical practitioners blessed with incredible powers of healing) developed this system of medicine.

 

The colours – greens, yellows and oranges – are earthy and represent life on earth. The circle that houses the brand represents our world, the shared environment we live in, to constantly remind us that our resources are limited and we have a responsibility in safeguarding it.

 

We are on a mission to do our bit to make this planet healthier and happier and we wish for each one of you to join us.

 

Peace.

Our Team

The central theme for the team at 18 Herbs is ‘Origination from proven traditional knowledge supported by modern scientific validation’. This is central to all we do. Our key team members have expertise in the following:

 

  • Herbal nutraceuticals, ethnomedicine, toxicology, nutrient assimilation, traditional (Siddha & Ayurveda) practice, Varma (pressure points) therapy, traditional Nadi (pulse) diagnosis and treatment, drug designing, clinical trials, and manufacturing.
  • Managing large International medicinal herbs and nutraceuticals projects for institutions like Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
  • Wide experience in organic and sustainability certifications across a range of manufacturers and certifiers in India and across key International geographies.
  • Organic herbs cultivation and sourcing
  • Consulting engagements with the Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME), Govt. of India, for setting up herbal industrial clusters, herbs processing, certification, sustainable harvesting, manufacturing of herbal food supplements, and setting up world-class manufacturing facilities for Department of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (AYUSH) industries.
  • Senior marketing, brand and category management.
  • Seasoned entrepreneurship experience across consumer packaged goods and consumer tech industries.
  • Corporate governance and financial management.

Location

“Madurai — An Ancient Seat of Traditional Medicine”

18 Herbs Organics was founded and has its headquarters in Madurai, in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu, one of India’s great temple towns.

 

Madurai is situated on the banks of the Vaigai river, at the base of the Western Ghats which is recognized as one of the world’s eight biodiversity hotspots. Madurai has a rich cultural heritage passed on from the great Tamil era more than 2500 years old. It was the capital city of the great Pandya Kings. Madurai has been historically associated with growth of Tamil literature and culture as well as the Siddha system of medicine. It is believed that 18 important ‘Siddhars’ developed this system of medicine and prescribed specific formulations to treat 4,448 pathological conditions. 18 Herbs Organics campus is situated in the heart of this belt in Nagamalai. We grow over 150 species of herbs in our biodiversity garden within close proximity to an ancient 2300 year old beautiful Siddha school that is situated inside a monolithic cave.

Modern day Madurai functions as an important hub for raw and processed herbs to India as well as International markets. The region is rich in herbal diversity with more than 1200 herbal species, earning the title “Herbal gateway of South India”. Several unique conditions help make the Madurai region a productive herbal supply zone:

 

  • Proximity to the Western Ghats herbal sourcing region
  • Rich herbal diversity in this landscape
  • Fertile area well fed by the Indian monsoon to create large tracts of cultivation regions in South India
  • More than 10,000 experienced herbal gatherers and collectors in forest and non-forest areas who gain livelihood from these activities that includes several indigenous tribal groups
  • Skilled labour for processing herbs such as drying and separation of adulterant species
  • Native knowledge by local growers and traders on raw material — collection season, species purity, stage, moisture content, foreign matter, colour, packing and bailing, alkaloid content, organic farming and sustainability sensibilities as well as certifications, legal clearances, packaging and shipping, etc.
  • Well connected transport and logistics to other states

Scientific Research

18 Herbs Organics’ team of professional scientists has expertise in national and international research projects on organic herbs cultivation, processing, nutritional science, biotechnology and toxicology. This helps us evolve the best wellness products for our consumers.

 

Products are formulated combining efficacy of proven Indian herbs qualified with the approved modern techniques to provide safe, effective and holistic solutions to lifestyle diseases like diabetes, hypertension and stress disorders, obesity, immuno-disorders, joint pain and arthritis, hair and scalp disorders, etc.

 

In addition to its internal capabilities, 18 Herbs Organics works very closely with the following renowned institutions for testing, research and up-gradation of its products:

 

  • Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU)
  • International Varma Research Foundation (IVRF)
  • Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) – Madras
  • National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) accredited labs
  • Indian Institute of Crop Processing Technology (IICPT)
  • The United Planters’ Association of Southern India (UPASI) Labs

Our Farming and Manufacturing Practices

18 Herbs Organics manufactures high quality products from its manufacturing unit using standards of:

 

  • Good manufacturing practices (GMP)
  • ISO 9001-2008
  • ISO 9001 – 22000
  • National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL)
  • Good agricultural and Organic farming practices under the guidelines of Government of India’s National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP)

The company chooses the best quality raw materials from its own agri farms. We grow therapeutic plants, fruits and herbs like Noni, Gymnema, Senna, Tulsi (Holy basil), Hibiscus and Amla (Indian gooseberry). We maintain a herbal biodiversity garden with over 150 medicinal species used for ongoing research.

 

In addition to our own farms, we have contract farming sites run under our direct strict supervision. These farms are registered with The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA).

 

18 Herbs Organics strives to be a positive force for social and environmental change and are continually engaged with communities to improve livelihood in rural areas. By adopting the eco-friendly trade principles, our commitment to our farmers and women goes well beyond paying fair wages for the products they create. We believe that providing healthy, viable and sustainable economic opportunities for them is the primary motivating force behind our business.