Authenticating Essential Oils a Minefield

"More than half the tea tree oil on Canadian shelves is not pure."
"They can be contaminated with pesticides, phthalates and other endocrine disruptors, heavy metals. It's shocking what you find if you go looking for it."
"I've never seen a sample of Chinese tea tree oil that is tea tree oil, and I've tested hundreds and hundreds of samples. They're coming up with a concoction that approximates tea tree oil and they're selling it as 100 percent pure tea tree oil."
"They're mixing it with low-grade industrial waste that comes from other oils they've distilled, including hash oil and pine oil."
"In most instances, the manufacturers have absolutely no idea themselves that they're selling adulterated material. They genuinely believe that it is pure because the people that are supplying it to them are supplying them with fake certificates of analysis."
Tony Larkman, CEO, Australian Tea Tree Oil Industry [ATTIA]

Tea Tree Oil (Australia)

"Most of our adulterated tea tree oils say 'bottled in Canada', but a consumer really has no idea where they're from."
"And they all say 100 percent pure."
Shannon O'Brien, president, Abundance Naturally, wellness products distributor, Canada

Sweet Basil Essential Oil

If the label of a tea tree product doesn't read 100 percent pure Melaleuca Alternifolia and you don't find a Natural Product Number (NPN) on it, it isn't genuine tea tree oil. An NPN number is taken to mean that the product has a licence from Health Canada which permits the product's classification as an antiseptic since pure tea tree oil is a natural antiseptic. The line of tea tree oils, for example, obtainable from The Body Shop makes no antiseptic claims.

The purchasing public loyal to the wellness industry is large, with greater numbers of people turning to alternative remedies, supplements and concoctions most of which are completely unregulated. That in and of itself is a huge problem, since it leads to a 'Wild West' scenario where bottling and labelling products as authentically natural with no fillers as added ingredients or substitutions for the genuine product remains a gamble for the uninitiated and trusting consumer.

The millions of consumers convinced that there is great benefit to be had with the use of alternative and natural solutions has transformed small-scale enterprises into multi-billion-dollar corporations whose products are as good as gold for the bottom line of these mega-manufacturers. By 2023 the global market value of these products is expected to reach over $12-billion in sales and profits. Essential oil products are widely sought-after by a growing horde of convinced consumers.

Peppermint Essential Oil, Japan

Those oils are so popular they can be found not only on pharmacy shelves of large urban centers but on the shelves of rural pharmacies as well; whether lavender, tea tree, eucalyptus, lemon, peppermint or oregano, extracted from source through steam distillation, the plants suspended over boiling water, their oils extracted by the steam and the steam then siphoned into a vessel through a tube. Cooled to liquid form a separation between oil and water occurs, the oil collected as an essential oil, the water used in aromatherapy.

Saje Natural Wellness based in Vancouver alone netted a 1,547 percent increase in demand resulting in record sales between 2016 and 2017. The wellness industry hasn't swept onto the shopping list of all consumers, however; skeptics consider the entire enterprise as quackery. Despite an endless number of testimonials that essential oils cure acne, migraines, anxiety and other conditions, an opposite community of those viewing their efficacy as useless shams also exists.

Eucalyptus Globulus Essential Oil, India

As for the products' reliability as unerring sources of enhanced health, there is the issue of "purity" claims in an unregulated industry. As a result, health risks in the use of unlisted supplements used in the ingredients represents a real concern. While one user can claim eucalyptus oil relieved allergy symptoms or arthritis pain, those results could simply be a placebo effect, since there might not have been real eucalyptus oil in use.

The crux of the problem likely can be traced to China, since essential oils ending up on Canadian shelves happen to originate in China, in great measure. Faking lavender and peppermint is anything but insurmountable, since producers can readily mimic their scents; lavender oil spiked with synthetics, stretched with solvents or replaced with lavandin oil, chemically unalike lavender oil but with a similar fragrance.

Major brands don't necessarily make false claims when selling essential oil products, but the trust of consumers in those brands can lead to their obtaining products far from what they imagine them to be. Selling one of the most popular lines of tea tree products in North America, The Body Shop makes no effort to claim that it uses 100% pure tea tree oil concentrate. Oil should always be found in amber or dark glass bottles since clear glass causes light to oxidize oil.

Lavender Essential Oil

Labels should be identified that commit to identifying the country the oils come from, as "product of ***country", not simply "bottled in Canada". Selecting oils that identify Australian-grown, or product of Australia -- in view of that country's long history of producing essential oils, relates to stricter quality controls and independent testing. Labels should reveal the presence of "essential oil", not just tea tree oil, lavender oil or rosemary oil. Low-grade hybrids can be identified with the alternate labelling.

And the term "therapeutic grade" is nothing but a play to impress people, as a marketing term with no guarantee whatever. Caveat emptor applies.