I have a friend who was “kind” enough to inform me about how whale vomit (umm, gross!) is worth the price of gold, as it is used in high end perfumes.

I was certainly skeptical, as that sounds ridiculous and disgusting… who would spray that on themselves!

However, in researching it, my friend was correct – Sperm Whales vomit something known as “Ambergis”, which is a waxy substance that floats and is highly sought after for use in high end perfumes. It is illegal to possess it in the US (that doesn’t really make sense to me) but not in many other countries. Apparently, as the vomit ages, the color darkens and produces a smell that is described as sweet, earthy and marine. It is also waxy, which allows it to retain scent well.

However, if people actually knew what was in their high end perfume, would they really buy it??? Gross!

I ran across an article from November 2016, in which 3 fisherman from Oman (nation on the Arabian Peninsula) were fishing and found a record-breaking piece of whale vomit which weighed 176 pounds (GROSS!). The value was estimated to be $3 million USD, though their first offer was for $2.8 million. Doing the math, $3 million for 176 pounds comes out to $1,065.34 per ounce, which is not too far behind the spot price of gold.

So I have to admit, though I was highly skeptical, my friend was correct about the vomit and the price being close to gold. However, I now am going to insist my wife stops wearing perfume… all I can think about now is whale vomit! GROSS!!

Brian