According to the current 2020 edition of the Chinese Pharmacopoeia, natural borneol is an extract from the fresh branches and leaves of Cinnamomum camphora (L.) Sieb., a plant of the Lauraceae family. It has the effects of opening orifices, reviving the spirit, clearing heat, and relieving pain. Natural borneol, also known as natural dextrorotatory borneol and camphora officinarum, was originally named "dragon brain incense" and was first recorded in the Tang Dynasty Materia Medica. According to the Compendium of Materia Medica, it was named for its appearance resembling mica and its color like ice and snow. It is originally from the Sumatran Islands in Indonesia, extracted from the resin of a tree called Dryobalanops aromatica Gaertn.f. China does not have this tree and has always relied on imports to meet its needs. Natural borneol is a traditional precious Chinese medicinal material and high-grade spice, an important drug in the preparation of traditional Chinese medicines, and a high-grade additive in daily chemicals and the food industry.

　　In the mid-1980s, under the auspices of the Jiangxi Provincial Forestry Department, a "Camphor Tree Cooperation Group" was formed by the Jian City Forestry Research Institute, the Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing Normal University (now Capital Normal University), and the Jiangxi Camphor Factory, among others. They agreed to conduct collaborative research on the project "Research on the Selection of Superior Economic Types of Camphor Trees," thus launching a new round of surveys of camphor tree resources in Jian. During this project, the Jian City Forestry Research Institute discovered a new and rare camphor tree chemical type in 1986—longnao camphor [Cinnamomum camphora (L.) Sieb.]. The leaves of this tree are rich in essential oil, with an oil content of about 2%, and the main component of the leaf essential oil, dextrorotatory borneol (natural borneol), accounts for 87%.

　　In addition, there is natural dextrorotatory borneol extracted from a chemical type—longnao type—of Cinnamomum longepaniculatum (Gamble) N. Chao ex H. W. Li from Xinhouang County, Hunan, and natural dextrorotatory borneol extracted from a chemical type—borneol tree—of Cinnamomum burmannii (C. C. et Th. Nees) Bl. by the South China Botanical Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

　　Researchers have found that longnao camphor contains 87% dextrorotatory borneol and about 3% camphor; longnao type oil camphor contains 73% dextrorotatory borneol and about 23% camphor; and the borneol tree in Cinnamomum burmannii contains 70% dextrorotatory borneol. In addition, the content of leaf essential oil also varies: 1.53%~1.93% for longnao camphor, 0.45% for longnao type oil camphor, and 0.34% for the borneol tree in Cinnamomum burmannii. Therefore, longnao camphor has a higher content of both leaf essential oil and dextrorotatory borneol than the other two types, while the camphor content is much lower than that of longnao type oil camphor. The reason for this is that the climate and soil conditions in Jian, Jiangxi are suitable for the growth of longnao camphor.

　　After more than 30 years of efforts by a large number of scientific and technological workers and personnel engaged in the natural borneol industry, Jian, Jiangxi has become the largest planting area, largest production volume, best quality, and lowest production cost of natural borneol in China.