Does the word "adulteration" mean anything to you?

If not, you've come to the right place, because we're going to explain everything that's behind this word.

You've probably read or heard the phrase "our essential oils are pure". But did you know that this often conceals a very different reality?

Adulteration is a dishonest practice, because it consists of mixing a "pure" product with another of inferior quality. This affects the quality of the final product.

It can also be toxic: for example, if the products are not to be mixed. And it can also reduce the effects of the finished product. It's also unfair to pay for natural and receive only synthetic.

The different types of adulteration:

• An essential oil can be adulterated according to the part of the plant used. This method is based on the chemical similarity of different parts of the same plant. For example, add cinnamon leaf essential oil to cinnamon bark essential oil. Since these two essential oils share similar components, but are priced differently, mixing them can be tempting.
• Adulteration also aims to modify the product's characteristics to bring it into line with standards and thus fill analysis gaps. To correct a low density, the unscrupulous supplier will add mineral oil, for example.
• It is also possible to adulterate an essential oil to correct its olfactory characteristics. To do this, the counterfeiter will use "bouquets". These are made up of highly potent olfactory components, which are inserted into the product to be adulterated. To give you an example, it is possible to reconstitute an essential oil of Lemon(Citrus limonum) from Orange terpenes, to which is added a mixture of distilled Lemon essential oil, Citronella (Cymbopogon winterianus Jowitt) and various synthetic compounds.

Rose essential oil

Adulteration is widely used in the case of Rose(Rosa x damascena Miller) essential oil. Since it has a high added value, it is subject to many modifications to make it both cheaper and more fragrant. Today's best-known blend is a mixture of Palmarosa essential oil(Cymbopogon martinii var. motia), Guaiacum wood(Guaiacum officinale or Guaiacum sanctum) and whiting (= a solid fatty substance extracted from the cavities of sperm whales, used in the manufacture of soaps and cosmetics[1]).

How can this practice be restricted?

Controls and tools are in place to detect these traces of adulteration. At the same time, however, techniques for camouflaging these same traces are being developed. It's even possible to imitate a chromatographic profile.

That's why at Landema, a subsidiary of the Biolandes Group, we attach great importance to the quality of the essential oils we offer, and we control them systematically: for each batch of essential oil, our laboratories carry out 15 cross-analyses to detect even the most subtle modifications.

We are also committed to providing you with traceability and strict, comprehensive regulatory documentation. For each of our products, you'll find :

• A technical data sheet providing information on the product's components and origin
• A certificate of analysis for each product
• A safety data sheet summarizing legal classifications, transport and storage risks
• An allergen certificate and, in some cases, an IFRA certificate to help you adapt your preparations
• Certification documents for products bearing the BIO, FFL or Cosmos labels.

We hope you find this information useful, and encourage you to find out all you can about the products you buy, so that you can be sure of their quality.

To find out more about what makes an essential oil good, you can also read our blog post on the subject.

And if you want to delve deeper into the subject of adulteration, you can also read the book "La sciences des huiles essentielles médicinales" written by French researcher Pierre Franchomme and published in 2015 by Editions Guy Trédaniel.

You can now find a selection of the highest quality essential oils in our online store.

Landema, a French company and subsidiary of the family-owned Biolandes Group, specializes in online sales of essential oils and other plant extracts direct from the manufacturer. We bring you the benefit of over 40 years' know-how in the cultivation and processing of top-quality raw materials.

[1] https://www.cnrtl.fr/definition/blanc-de-baleine