Wattle-based specialty products are derived from bark of the Black Wattle tree, a species of Acacia native to Australia. Rapid-growing wattle trees were originally grown in South Africa in the 1890s for specific applications. Research into resins from wattle extract started in the 1950s and Bondtite launched a series of wattle-based adhesives in the late 1960s to a global market – frontrunners in an ever-expanding industry.
Black Wattle grows best in the cool mist-belt region of South Africa along the eastern escarpment. The trees are grown on a ten-year cycle and managed in such a manner as to ensure that growers receive a regular income from their trees and that a regular supply of good quality wattle bark is available for processing at the extract factories.