In its positioning as a leading producer of clean label tocopherols, vitamin E and plant sterols, AOM's products have been verified by the Non-GMO Project, highlighting tocopherols produced from non-traditional sources.
The Non-GMO Project is a non-profit organisation committed to preserving and building sources of non-genetically modified (GMO) products, with the aim of eliminating GMO foods from consumer goods. Its main activities include educating consumers and providing verified non-GMO choices, thus giving additional transparency across the supply chain.
Materials like Sun E - sourced exclusively from the sunflower - and Tocomix R - from European rapeseed - are recognised worldwide as non-GMO crops. While these materials have been non-GMO since AOM introduced them to the market, the Non- GMO Project certification gives them an additional seal of trust.
However, the verification of AOM's soybean-sourced product range, Tocomix IP, posed a much greater challenge, given that soybean is one of the most widespread GMO crops. For many years, AOM has gone to great lengths to produce high-quality non-GMO soybean tocopherols and obtain the certifications from prestigious entities. AOM has been certified at plant level by SGS, validating the facility's production of non-GMO materials. In addition, each lot of Tocomix IP is audited by SGS to produce a lot-level, non-GMO certificate after validating the traceability of this material all the way from the seed. Thanks to this rigorous standard, Tocomix IP has been recognised by the Non-GMO Project.
Traceability at lot level and third-party verification are key. By AOM's calculations, looking at the volume of non-GMO soybeans planted in the world that are destined for oil production against the volume of tocopherols sold as non-GMO products, non-GMO tocopherols exceed the theoretical availability of genuine non-GMO soybean raw material by 70%. This means that quality managers using these materials are demanding more from their suppliers.
The AOM-produced materials approved and published by the non-profit association are Tocomix IP (from non-GMO soy), Tocomix R (from European rapeseed) and Sun E (natural Vitamin E from sunflower, producing mixed tocopherols rich in alpha).
