• IntelCosmet is able to trace their essential oils and other natural vegans from plant to bottle.
• Chemo-typed oils are key to quality, performance, environmental concerns on our part.

To the average person who uses essential oils, these two statements may not, at first, be meaningful.  However, I believe you will soon find tremendous value in these statements as much as we value them and become even more dedicated to our integrity and products.

• Plant to Bottle

There are only a handful of companies in the world that can trace their essential oils from plant to bottle.  This means knowing the location where the plant or seedling was grown, when and how the plant material was harvested, and how the distillation of plant material was performed.  Most large companies, and even some small ones, cannot trace the path their essential oils have taken.  This also goes for all our essentials, from all forms of vegan selections.  This is because traders and brokers exchange a number of times. They lose track of where the essential oils and most raw materials have been, and under what conditions they have been stored.  For us at Intelcosmet, it is a fundamental part of our development to know exactlly the origins of all our ingredients in order to bring the highest quality 100% natural products to you.

We are able to trace all of our essential oils from plant to bottle to product.  This is because of our interaction with our supplier, for one being a Certified AromaTherapist, Mr. Larivee also is a qualified biochemist, perfumist and a well know expert in the therapeutic use of essential oils including active involvement in knowing about growing and distillation projects around the world.  He has actively written for many newsletters and publications as well.  He has personally traveled the world to find the best and purest. He can trace the essential oils he sells to IntelCosmet literally from the time they were planted until the essential oils enter our building to be either bottled and used in the production of our many products.  The quality of these select choices for the use of our productions is unsurpassed.  His imports are so select, that quantities at times are limited as there are only a handful of true cultivators of this quality production around the world.

Mr. Larivee spends the greater portion of each year supporting and working with the people who supply IntelCosmet Essential Oils and raw materials all over the world.  His fifteen plus year reputation in the therapeutic essential oil industry makes him a leader.  Luc is respected in the essential oil industry not only for his integrity, but for also being well acquainted with the standards and concepts in both the flavor and fragrance sector and the increasingly exclusive therapeutic oil industry.  Mr. Luc Larivee is a true expert and is able to perform/analyze Gas Chromatography and Mass Spectrum test results as well.  He is able to detect and identify ‘GC’ peaks on essential oil test results that other experts are not able to recognize.  Luc can detect fragrance and chemical adulteration in essential oils in a manner that most never take thought to, even the most clever adulterations.  IntelCosmet has always felt extremely fortunate to work with him. He is not only select in that of his imports, but also in who he works with.  His choice in those that are allowed to access his imports are but a select few.  Nathalie Van Eeckhoudt is considered to be one of those select few. Her abilities to create the exact synergies between botanics and aromatics has the highest respect of Luc and many other professionals both in this industry and more.  Our exclusivities with Mr. Larivee have allowed us, IntelCosmet to bring you the finest in 100% natural cosmetics today.

• The Essential Oil Industry

In most cases, money seems to be a driving force in business. It is the same in the essential oil and raw naturals industry.  The flavor and fragrance industry, which consumes nearly 90% of the world’s essential oil production, looks for essential oils that are of no particular quality, inexpensive, and plentiful.  That industry then re-distills and blends these oils to suit the scent needs of other industries, including food consumables, cosmetic, personal care, and household.  You can expect that both artificial and natural additives will be injected into these essential oils to perfect a desired flavor and smell that can be replicated.

The therapeutic essential oil industry and the flavor and fragrance industry have struggled over 40 years to have separate identities.  Yet, even the therapeutic essential oil market struggles within itself to keep integrity.  Money is the driving force behind the many acts of ravaging the skin of our Mother Earth even to the point where many botanical species are being lost to the name of science and development.

Many companies involved in the therapeutic market see no problem crossing over and purchasing essential oils of no particular quality when necessary.  Even when the more pristine, exclusive essential oils rise in price and are difficult to locate, IntelCosmet does not compromise.  We are not interested in cheaper quality oils simply to gain greater profit.  The highest quality botanics and oils are selected to insure not only the quality of our products, but the final result, you, our client is left with peace of mind in knowing the purity of nature is now a living gift from nature herself.

Some essential oil companies seek selectivity by using acronyms such as AFNOR, which lead people to believe these letters are some kind of magic guarantee for purity.  In fact, this is not the case.  These marketing techniques only lead ‘curious’ people to investigate further.

The question always arises. How can the average consumer know the quality of essential oils they are buying?

I’ve heard numerous people say, “ You all say the same thing. How can an ordinary person know who is telling the truth? ”

WE believe first and foremost, you must ask questions, and if you don’t get the answers you want, or the answers that make sense, a red flag should go up.  To understand more the value of these precious oils, one must also need to understand a little about essential oils, and this involves reading and learning. Essential oils may not be easy, but they certainly are worth it.  We will be adding many articles from time to time, information to better help you not only understand that of our products, but a great deal more.  All of the select ingredients we offer are also used in our own exclusive productions and cosmetic formulas. Internally skin tested for quality before bottled and delivered to you. IntelCosmet will not sacrifice quality to price or other marketing hype or promise.  If it does not meet our standards for use in our products, it simply does not become available to you in one of the select choices that we offer.

• What’s the Issue With Chemo-typed Essential Oils?

When an essential oil is tested and found naturally to have one or more main ‘key constituents’ that are higher, or lower than normal, it is identified as a chemo-typed essential oil.  Aromatherapists and phyto-therapists refer to the properties found in essential oils as constituents. Chemists speak of them as ‘chemicals’.  Hence, the word developed by chemists, ‘chemotyped’.

Naturally grown chemo-typed essential oils are rare and in short supply.  When true chemotypes are available, they can command higher prices.  In and of itself, there is nothing wrong with a naturally occurring chemo-typed essential oil, and they can be therapeutic in nature.  However, the real question is, are chemo-typed oil superior in any way?  And here, lies the debate.

• The Law of All or Nothing

For the last 25 years, the dark cloud that has loomed over the practice of aromatherapy is the lack of reliable scientific evidence regarding the viability of plants and plant essences to fight disease.

Since the advent of synthetic medications, the emphasis of medical therapy has been on chemically active medicinal ingredients that combat infectious disease.  The central idea is that every disease-causing organism has a chemical enemy, which will destroy that disease.  Chemists classify anti-microbial agents according to their active ingredients.  In other words, laboratory analysis seeks to test medication for the one principle active ingredient or chemical.

Some scientists believe the same has to be true for essential oils.  The one active ‘chemical’ in an oil makes it more beneficial.  The scientists are entitled to their belief, but I have yet to see any scientific data that a chemotyped oil has greater efficacy than a whole, unaltered, genuine, therapeutic, single species essential oil.

In fact, since 1972, a team of French medical doctors has been working with whole, genuine essential oils, the same type that IntelCosmet uses, in both laboratory and clinical studies.  They have found that the complete composition of an essential oil rather than one single constituent makes the oil effective.  In fact, their work overwhelming concludes that the chemotyped oils are not better than a single species, whole, complete essential oil.  If you would like to learn more about this subject, read The ABC’s of Phyto-therapy or The Aromatherapy Education Institute’s Course Manual.

• Be Aware – There Is More

There is a valid and very real concern with promoting chemo-typed essential oils and products developed around them.  There is almost no way, except with an expert like Luc Larviee or Nathalie Van Eeckhoudt, you can tell if the essential oil is a true chemotyped oil or if it has been tampered with, even a little.  Essential oils can easily be created to appear as chemo-typed.  You can do it naturally, or you can do it synthetically, but the point is, you can do it.  For example, you can add a geranial to a single specie rose geranium, or thymol to thyme. We have been offered and seen numerous varieties of chemotyped tea tree and eucalyptus essential oils, usually out of Australia.

If an essential oil has an odd profile, it can be labeled a chemo-typed oil. People will try to sell it as something unique, unusual, and more beneficial, …for more money.  I believe you can understand why a quality control expert is absolutely necessary.

• Moving Forward

As true, single species, therapeutic essential oils become more difficult to find, you will see many new marketing ideas emerge, just as we have with chemo-typed essential oils.  Do not be misled or misinformed. Our commitment to you is that we will always stay on the scientific cutting edge, yet maintain truth and integrity.  We will make strong statements regarding the quality of our essential oils and raw ingredients in use, but we will also be able to back up our statements when ever required.