About Original Swiss Aromatics - Essential Oils

The Bio Authenticity Project

We maintain that knowing the producer is the best safeguard against adulteration. While we analyze our essential oils by GC/MS as much as we can, we do know that analysis alone has not kept adulterated oils out of aromatherapy. To the contrary, analysis hype is often used to sell cleverly adulterated oils. To demonstrate authenticity a verifiable authentic sample is needed. In such a case, a specific essential oils from specific producer and a given batch can be matched against the fingerprint of the original.

Why Bio Authenticity?

Plants have optimized these defensive capabilities by making not one, but many components which will act together synergistically. These complex natural mixtures, such as essential oils, inhibit not just one, but multiple processes in the yeast cell. Such multilayered effects have been fine tuned by evolution. They ultimately serve as the immune system of the living plant and they are the core of the full therapeutic quality of an essential oil.

In comparison single component effects are one dimensional. This is not only true for to inhibiting yeast but more importantly when it comes to improving the health of the human body in general. Ultimately the complete biological effect of an EO from a living plant cannot be reproduced by single components nor by the clever mixing of multiple components in the lab.

This is why the essential oils from plants of a specific growing area has effects unique to that population. For example the Lavender on a hillside in Provence faces challenges that are specific to this hillside. This hillside Lavender population will ultimately produce an oil perfectly suited to address these specific challenges. These specific Lavenders from the Italian and French Sea Alps were such that they stood out in a way that our ancestors began harvesting, processing and using them. Lavender on a vast cultivated plane in Crimea will confront quite different challenges. While the resulting oil can be very good its biological activity may be quite different. Lavenders from these newer growing areas are cultivated because of corporate demand for the commodity and not so much because they were part of the lore or the culture.

German Chamomile is another good example. Originally from Central Europe the oil displays strikingly different composition depending on its origin. Oils from Nepal or Egypt do not have the coveted (-) alpha Bisabolol content that gives the original German Chamomile its anti-inflammatory power.

Unique bioauthentic oils from a specific origin are what you get when you procure an oil from small producers who operate in a specific region.

However, demand for EO has risen dramatically, and such regional productions are increasingly rare. Today oils are acquired from sources in vastly different areas of the world. They still may be 100% natural. But they are concocted from multiple natural sources into global commodities. It is important to note that the GC/MS reports of such oils may look quite correct proving the absence gross adulterations. But as discussed elsewhere, GC/MS analysis alone cannot show authenticity.

So what we look for are bio authentic oils that have the unique qualities for which they were originally recognized by Hildegard, Paracelsus or Taoist sages. They were recognized because in their specific origin these aromatics plants developed qualities that made them stand out.

So when we at OSA look for Chamomile we look for the highly effective oil from Germany and not for a dull green global blend. When we look for Lavender we look for the radiant Population Lavender from Provence from a cultivation that received the coveted AOP designation and not a low cost, global Fine Lavender made from clonal Bulgarian Lavender, French Hybrids and potentially some natural isolates.

We believe that almost all our oils will warrant to be designated Bio Authentic. Over the next few months we will revisit most of our oils and develop a Bio Authenticity profile which will include many details not covered in todays standard Certificates of Analysis. Details such as precise region of origin, whether or not we were able to shoot pictures of the plants distilled for our oil as well as relevant cultural narratives.

More About Essential Oils

Essential Oils are products of the plant organism. The way we offer essential oils is inspired by accepting oils as precious products of biological processes, cherished for their own beauty and brilliance rather then as industrial raw materials for the food or fragrance industry, standardized and diluted to be made econommically acceptable. We will offer essential oils which, to the best of our abilities to ascertain, are truly genuine and authentic. This means nothing has been added not taken out. It also means that no other natural substances have been added, that an oil is truly and exclusively from the plan this it claims to be.