Letter to Distributors
November 20, 2006
Dear Distributors,
Young Living’s mission of providing pure essential oils has been forever enriched through the defining work of the Association Française de Normalisation (AFNOR) and ISO (International Organization for Standardization).
The quantitative standards set by ISO and AFNOR outline the principal constituents and specified range (the minimum and maximum percentage of those constituents) for certain essential oils. Young Living’s essential oils meet the AFNOR/ISO guidelines on essential oils for which guidelines have been established.
The value in these standards exists because of the independent nature of the ISO and AFNOR organizations. They are not connected with Young Living, and they do not certify that Young Living’s oils are therapeutic grade.
Young Living sought to find a term that would let customers know that its oils are pure and efficacious. The term “therapeutic grade” is used to differentiate Young Living’s oils from those whose purity and effectiveness might be in question. Young Living sends its oils to world-renowned, independent laboratories to determine that the oils are unadulterated and meet AFNOR standards where applicable. All oils are further tested for quality and standards compliance upon arrival at Young Living. There is no organization at the present time that can certify that an oil is therapeutic grade. This is simply the high standard set by Young Living.
Dr. Hervé Casabianca is a research engineer at CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique) in charge of the Agricultural and Food Chemistry team. Dr. Casabianca holds a doctorate degree in organic chemistry and is a member of the AFNOR Committee for Essential Oils. While he was not the head of the essential oil standardization work, he was a voting member at the time of the standards adoption.
As a friend of the cause for pure essential oils, Dr. Casabianca was a guest speaker at Young Living’s 2000 Grand Convention. He spoke about the precision testing that essential oils undergo but did not state that CNRS conducts radon analysis of plant and essential oil specimens. Another CNRS laboratory conducts radioactivity tests using carbon-14.
Young Living holds AFNOR, ISO, and Dr. Casabianca in high regard. We are requesting that distributors make necessary corrections to their personal websites to reflect the independent nature of these organizations and Dr. Casabianca. Young Living information will be reviewed and corrected as well. We regret any inconvenience caused to Dr. Casabianca and the CNRS team for any misperceptions of their positions or independence. Your immediate response in clarifying any contrary statements will be greatly appreciated. We wish you continued success in your distributorships and other endeavors.
Yours in health,
Young Living Executive Team