Pure Ghee - or is it?
"Studies of the industry find it is not uncommon to find ghee samples containing over 50% of vegetable oils” - US National Library of Medicine and National Institutes of Health.
If you’re wondering why there is such a price discrepancy between different brands of ghee, adulteration is one reason.
The other reason is the quality of the butter. Is the ghee made from a pure source such as organic, bio-dynamic, grass fed happy cows - free from GMO and happily producing milk? Or is the butter made from commercial cows, fed hormones and producing their milk under duress.
As the market for high quality, organic pure ghee increases across the world, the low supply has created increased prices.
Highly priced ghee products attract the shady side of production.
Adulteration of ghee and other malpractices grow within the industry. All chasing the dollar and hoping to gain more profit.
Unfortunately, the main additives that are added in the manufacturing process are hard to detect visually. They are:
- Vegetable oils such as palm oil, coconut oil, and partially hydrogenated refined nut oil
- Animal Body fat such as tallow left over wastes from the meat industry.
Adulterated ghee will have a low shelf life because vegetable oils go rancid after a period. If you have ever smelt butter that has started turn you will be familiar with the rancid smell.
More importantly adulterated Ghee will not have the same health properties as pure ghee. Like vegan ghee, while it has the title of ghee - it's not ghee.
How do I know I am buying pure ghee?
Know your maker is one way, and price is another. It is impossible to make high quality organic handmade ghee cheaply.
Quality of ingredients cost. Good pure ghee, handmade takes time. When you cut corners to reduce time the quality of the batch is reduced. You lose nutrients due to high heat, you leave lactose in the ghee because the strain isn't correct or you leave moisture in so shelf life is reduced.
With pure ghee is it definitely a case of buyer beware and ‘you get what you pay for’
