What They Have Never Told You About Tea Tree Oil

Melaleuca alternifolia in bloom
Photo courtesy of Australian Tea Tree Industry Association, ATTIA.

If you are the purchasing manager of a larger firm or the owner/manager of a small firm you should always have in place written procedures when you place a purchase order for any key product with any supplier.

A key product is one that is expected to provide specific therapeutic results when used although this is usually the case for all ingredients purchased when they are used in a product line or formulation: after all someone is going to use them. Ask yourself "would I use this on my loved ones? If the answer is yes then you are probably on the right track but the procedures, as you have learnt in this course, must be based on fact and good science.

Your written procedures need to be carefully thought out to ensure that even if you are away the same procedure is followed every single time. Of course you will also need to train all staff responsible for purchasing in the same way you train all staff who are manufacturing because one goes in hand with the other.

When a purchase order is placed with a supplier it is advisable to describe exactly what is required and to have this clearly stated on the purchase order in writing.

For 100% pure Tea Tree oil it is advisable to specify that the material (regardless of the country of origin):

1. Conforms in all details to ISO 4730: 2004 Standard for Oil of Melaleuca, terpinen-4-ol type (Tea Tree oil).
2. It has a minimum of 39.00% terpinen-4-ol and a maximum 43.00%
3. It has a maximum of 4% 1,8 cineole
4. The material is accompanied by a valid batch specific Certificate of Analysis tested to the ISO 4730: 2004 Standard
5. The material is accompanied by a certificate of Chiral purity to demonstrate that the chiral ratios are:

1. For terpinen-4-ol:   (+) 67.00% to 71.00% and (-) 29.00% to 33.00%
2. For α-terpineol:    (+) 68.00% to 77.00% and (-) 23.00% to 32.00%
3. For limonene:  (+) 57.00% to 63.00% and (-) 37.00% to 43.00%

Please note that the Certificate of Analysis (CofA) must be from a fully accredited laboratory and remember that is it too easy to substitute a CofA from a good batch and supply something else of lower quality so the rule here must be "trust but verify" once you get to know your supplier:

• If the supplier is new to you treat the product with suspicion until you have personally and independently verified that it is exactly what is specified.
• If the supplier is known to you and they have performed well in the past you can consider relaxing the rules slightly but remember the rule "trust but verify" and never lose sight of the fact that your supplier could also be being fooled as well.

Once the material is delivered it should be quarantined and a representative 50 mL is sample taken (e.g. if it is delivered in 3 containers a sample is drawn from each, these are mixed and a sub-sample taken). This sample should be split into two and carefully labelled and sealed.

One is a retention sample and should be stored in a cool, dark space for at least 12 months (preferably 2 years) after the expiry date of the batch received and also the expiry date of the manufactured product.

The other 25 mL should be sent to an accredited independent laboratory (I am sure there are several in Spain, I can find one if you want me to) for testing. The first test should be the Chiral and if there is any divergence from the expected range then a full ISO 4730: 2004 test should be conducted. This is exactly what happened with the two margin samples in the previous lesson.

This all looks to be both tedious and expensive doesn't it? Think for a moment please what would happen if the material is not what it is supposed to be and a customer gets sick... that is tedious and expensive!

Only when the material meets all of the criteria should it be released for manufacture. If you do it this way then there is a nearly 100% certainty that the product being sold is exactly what is described on the packaging and there can be no questions about the quality, safety and efficacy of the material being offered.

Alternatively, the manufacturer could purchase COP accredited 100% pure Australian TTO direct from an ATTIA member – this is the same as what is described above and if they want to they can become ATTIA members and, if certain guarantees and conditions are met, use the ATTIA logo on their packaging.

(SOURCE: Tony Larkman, private communication, 2016).

If you are a consumer ask questions in the store where you purchase your essential oils or formulations that say they contain essential oils. If the store staff can't answer your questions please think carefully about what you buy and where you buy before you do because as you have learned in this course there are plenty of instances where what you get is not what it  is supposed to be.

Please also suggest to the store manager and staff that they too try to learn more from this course-give them the link!