Origin & Impact
Where everything begins.
Every Urkaya product starts with a place, a material, and a person. This is the story behind the story.
The Materials
Three materials. One standard.
Vegetable Ivory
Tagua
A seed from Ecuadorian palm trees, internationally recognised as the sustainable alternative to animal ivory. Hard, durable, and exquisitely carvable.
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Amazonian Botanical
Guayusa
Used for 1,500 years by Kichwa communities in the Ecuadorian Amazon. Natural caffeine, antioxidants, and amino acids — without the crash.
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Andean Heritage
Textiles
Hand-woven by Otavalo artisans using techniques over 2,000 years old. Natural fibres, plant-based dyes, and patterns that encode Andean cosmology.
Explore →Transparency
From the Andes to your door.
We keep our supply chain short, documented, and fully traceable — from the artisan's hands to the end customer, with no hidden steps and no anonymous intermediaries.
Step 01
Harvest
Materials sustainably harvested from Ecuador’s forests and highlands by partner communities — by hand, in season.
Step 02
Craft
Artisans in Montecristi and Otavalo shape, weave, and finish each piece by hand using traditional techniques passed down through generations.
Step 03
Quality Check
Every batch is inspected against Urkaya’s standards. Anything that does not meet them is returned or repurposed — never sold.
Step 04
Export
Full customs documentation prepared: phytosanitary certificates, certificates of origin, customs invoices. Zero import duty under the EU–Ecuador FTA.
Step 05
Delivered
Minimal packaging. Tracked and insured shipping. Every order arrives knowing exactly where it came from and who made it.
Community Impact
Every piece gives back.
A portion of every Urkaya sale returns directly to the artisan communities that make the brand possible — funding fair wages, skills training, and cultural preservation programmes. We do not use the word “impact” lightly. We use it to mean: money, in the right hands, doing measurable good.
Our impact report →
“Every piece carries the memory of a mountain.”
Certifications & Standards
Built on verifiable integrity.
We pursue the certifications that matter to our buyers — not as marketing tools, but as commitments to the people and places behind every product.
Ecuador’s national health authority registration for guayusa production and export. Required for all food-grade botanical exports.
Preferential import tariff for Ecuador-origin goods entering the EU. We provide certificates of origin with every shipment.
Formal WFTO fair trade certification underway with our Ecuadorian artisan partner network. Expected completion 2026.
Organic certification for the guayusa line through an accredited certifying body in Ecuador. Application submitted.