American Emu Association Does an Emu Oil Study
Are you really buying emu oil?
By Mike Eppley
There have been many discussions about the quality of the emu oil being sold to the
public and how it would affect the marketplace. This was a concern by members at the 2011 AEA Convention and the
AEA has received many inquires from consumers about emu oil quality in the past year.
With a growing concern about emu oil quality the AEA Board hoped to find a way that would help our members,
others in the emu industry, and consumers be sure they were purchasing 100 percent pure emu oil. There was
discussion and research on how to pursue this growing problem.
The Board found that the problem facing the emu industry was also becoming a problem for other oil industries.
Rising costs were affecting the quality of the oils being sold in the marketplace. Not because they were bad, but
because they were being diluted or mixed with other oils. The biggest problems were in the olive oil industry. It
was found that a consumer would be buying what they thought was a bottle of pure olive oil and in fact it was olive
oil diluted with another vegetable oil.
With all the growing concerns the Board decided to do a study. There were 15 samples of different oils purchased to
do the study. The oils were purchased from retailers and on eBay. The study included 9 samples of American emu oil,
2 samples of Australian emu oil, 2 samples of American ostrich oil, 1 sample of organic soybean oil, and 1 sample
of canola oil.
The results were very surprising and shocking. Only 5 of the 11 samples of emu oil showed that they were pure emu
oil. This study validated the need for a fatty acid profile to be included in the trade rules for AEA Certified
Fully Refined Emu Oil. Adding the fatty acid profile will set guidelines to help determine if it is oil from an
emu, another animal or if the oil is from a plant. The guidelines set by the AEA should ensure you are getting pure
emu oil.
The results of the AEA Emu Oil Study of 2011 were announced and presented to the members attending the AEA 2012
Convention. After reviewing the study several members, including Dr Alam from Texas A&M University made
positive comments on the study and how it will help the industry.
The members all agreed that The Study validated the fact that AEA Certified Fully Refined Emu Oil and the AEA Seal
with the batch numbers on containers helps consumers know they are getting good quality pure emu oil.
The AEA Emu Oil Certification Program was developed to establish quality control measures to ensure that pure emu
oil legitimately displaying the AEA Certified Fully Refined seal or being marketed using the corresponding verbiage
is a high quality product that meets or exceeds the industry recognized standards for Fully Refined Grade A Emu Oil
as defined in the Emu Oil Trade Rules (Rule 103).
Both the verbiage "AEA Certified Fully Refined™" and the registered seal are trademarks of the AEA and can only be
used by AEA members with Board approval. Unauthorized use of either will be considered trademark infringement and
will be dealt accordingly.
To see the 2011 Study and the AEA Certified Fully Refined Emu Oil Program you can go to the AEA website at:
www.aea-emu.org/resources/oil/resources/oil
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