RUGOFARM was founded in 1991 in Rugombo, Burundi. It was a spin-off from a feasibility study conducted by the University of Burundi in the early 1990s on the valorization of tropical plants through the extraction of their essential oils.

The company started as a joint venture between local Burundian entrepreneurs and German investors, with several plants including Vetiver, Eucalyptus and Lemongrass.

With the crisis of 1993, the company closed down. RUGOFARM only resumed its activities in 2001, with a new plant imported from Indonesia, Patchouli.
After a few years of testing to improve the drying process, RUGOFARM created its own essential oil distillery. The first export to Europe takes place in 2010.

Today, RUGOFARM plays a central role in the Patchouli industry in Burundi. In its nursery, it produces high quality cuttings and advises the farmers whose leaves it buys back.