Fermented unflavored cod liver oil occupies a unique and highly specific position in Aajonus Vonderplanitz's framework. It is not classified as a supplement, it is classified as a food. Aajonus was explicit and emphatic about this distinction. When asked whether fermented cod liver oil is a supplement, he answered directly: "That's not a supplement, that's a food. Okay. It's like butter from milk, right. You know, you're just fermenting the meat of the fish to separate the oil, I mean the fat."

This classification matters enormously in his framework because supplements, by his definition, are chemically derived, heat-processed, solvent-treated toxic substances that injure the body. A properly fermented cod liver product, by contrast, undergoes no heat treatment and no chemical processing. It is the result of allowing cod livers to rot and ferment naturally, which breaks open the cells and releases the fats, which then rise and can be separated, analogous to how cream separates from milk, or how butter is derived from milk through mechanical agitation.

Aajonus described it as "the only good one" among all commercial fish oil products available at the time of his teachings, and he personally worked with Green Pastures for two years to help them formulate it. He stated he did not take a dime for that work, he simply wanted a genuinely good product to exist in the marketplace. The specific product he identified was Green Pastures Blue Ice Cod Liver Oil, non-flavored.

However, his overall assessment of this food even at its best carries a critical qualification: for people who are already on the Primal Diet at 90% or more, it provides no measurable benefit, no observable effect, and no additional health improvement over the diet itself. Its primary value, in his clinical observation, is for people who eat significant amounts of cooked food.

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Aajonus was insistent on a precise terminological and biochemical distinction. He stated that what is called "cod liver oil" is not actually an oil in the botanical sense. Oil, by his definition, comes only from seeds, vegetables, and certain fruits. Animal fats, including the fat in cod liver, are fats, not oils. He said: "Remember, oil is not cod liver oil, is not oil, it's fat. You can only get oil from seeds and vegetables."

He extended this principle to correct the common name itself: "The fat in cod liver should be cod liver fat, not cod liver oil, because that's what it is, cod liver fat, not cod liver oil."

This distinction has downstream significance in his framework because true oils (pressed from plants) behave as solvents and soaps in the body, they clean but do not nourish, do not lubricate the nervous system, and can create detoxification reactions. Animal fats, by contrast, nourish and rebuild tissues, including nervous tissue. The fat in fermented cod liver belongs to the animal fat category, with all the associated properties.

Aajonus cited fermented cod liver oil as one of the very few legitimate sources of actual vitamin D, as opposed to the synthetic "vitamin D" that is manufactured by hydrogenating mineral or vegetable oil and exposing it to radioactive isotopes. He said: "99% of all the vitamin D is made that way. It's not even vitamin D. It's plastic oil exposed to radioactive material. The only vitamin D that is truly vitamin D is from cod liver oil. And that'll be toxic if it isn't green pastures."

He added that it provides "extra vitamin D and some animal fats that are good for you," but immediately followed by stating his personal preference for butter and bone marrow for fat delivery: "I prefer butter. I prefer bone marrow stuff like that."

He also placed this in perspective by noting that raw meat itself contains substantial vitamin D: "You've got more vitamin D in three ounces of meat than you will get from the sun in 20 minutes. So we get lots of vitamin D unless you cook the meat and you destroy the vitamin D."

And separately: "So that's supposed to be where you're supposed to get concentrated vitamin D. Just eat butter. Go out in the sun."

Aajonus described cod liver oil as "acidic already. Terribly." However, he noted it may still be beneficial in the context it is used. He said: "Let's say cod liver oil, that's acidic already. Terribly, but it still may be good."

He also mentioned that in experiments with the flavored varieties, even the Super X oil version did not have any effect on acidity, but this appears to be a reference to the flavored product rather than the pure fermented unflavored version.

Aajonus noted that because the fermented cod liver fat is drawn from the liver of the fish, it carries bile, which has implications for digesting fat. He said: "The liver will have a lot, be a lot more bitter because it will have bile to digest the fats better."

Aajonus repeatedly and consistently returned to this finding across multiple workshop settings. He stated clearly: "In my experiments with people who do this diet 100% and anywhere from 90 to 100%, having a cod liver oil didn't make a bit of change. It didn't add anything." He offered the comparison: "Even with my experiments with people who've been on the primal diet for at least a year, year and a half, it doesn't add anything to it."

He also stated: "I didn't find that it increased the health in anybody who ate it who was on the diet, 95–100%." And: "I haven't found any change on it. Only with people who eat cooked foods."

For people eating cooked food, he said: "People want to cook diets, it's very good for them." And: "For people who eat a lot of cooked food, it might be helpful."

In one passage, Aajonus suggested a threshold below which it might carry value: "If you ate 60% butter and the fermented cod liver oil, but otherwise it's a big waste of money. Isolating an oil factor and not the whole gamut of water soluble fats." This implies that at 60% or below primal compliance, the product might contribute something meaningful, but for anyone eating 90%+ primal, it is an unnecessary expenditure.

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Aajonus made this point repeatedly and without ambiguity. There are two versions of cod liver oil products that have ever met his standards: 1. The fermented, unflavored version, the only one that is genuinely beneficial as a food 2. The "stinky one that burns your throat", which he identifies as the same product, characterizing it by its sensory properties

His exact words: "That's the best one. Or the stinky one that burns your throat. That's the only one that's any good. And that's entirely fermented. And you know it's good because it's rotten and nasty. It stinks bad. It tastes bad."

The sensory properties are not incidental, they are diagnostic. The nastiness, the stink, the burning sensation in the throat, the bitter taste, these are all signs of genuine fermentation and authenticity. A product that has been deodorized, flavored, or treated to become palatable has been adulterated and is no longer the same food.

He stated: "Cod liver oil is stinky, foul, and doesn't taste good when it is a good product." And: "It's a horrible substance. And that's the good stuff. That is the only good one."

He described the fermentation process in sensory terms: "It stinks. It burns. It's very bitter. And that's the fermented kind."

The flavored cod liver oil products, which Green Pastures developed after Aajonus helped create the original non-flavored version, were produced because "a lot of people won't eat that bitter, nasty tasting cod liver oil." Aajonus described what was done: "They put this oil, this food oil in it. Rosemary, thyme. Different oils that they put in. Licorice. Different flavors in it."

These flavoring agents are distilled oils. When asked about rosemary oil specifically being added as an antioxidant, he stated: "The rosemary oil is distilled and very toxic, solvent active." He acknowledged that the amount of rosemary oil present is likely small enough that it bonded with the cod liver oil and did not cause significant storage or injury issues, but the principle stands: any added distilled processing oil contaminates the product.

Aajonus referenced this in another context: "I help green pastures formulate it, but they have flavored kind that has distilled process oils to flavor it." He characterized this as the company responding to market pressure rather than health priorities.

Aajonus described a specific moment in the development of the correct product: "I mean, they made it for me three years ago. They brought the temperature down to 96 degrees." He confirmed the product worked as intended but it had a shelf-life problem: "They found that it would only last six months. So they could only sell it six months of the year."

He also recounted: "I worked with Green Pastures to create the fermented cod liver oil about 1.5 years ago. I tried it and it was good, but they did not sell it at the time because it would only remain stable for 6 months. Then the company decided to change processes to make it last 1 year. They did not contact me about their new processes or whether they changed the processes at all."

This is significant: after Aajonus finished his two years of work with them and verified the product was good, the company changed processes without informing him. The shelf-life problem, a product that goes rotten in six months, was not seen by Aajonus as a problem. He said: "I said, well that's okay, sell it high, sell it rotten. That's okay. Well nobody's going to buy it, nobody's going to eat it. Yeah they will, as long as they have any smarts about them. You educate them."

He acknowledged the commercial reality: "Oh no, no, we've got to have a clean product. So you know what's going to happen? It's no longer going to be a fish oil that's any good, or a fish fluid that's any good."

The process Aajonus described and approved is precisely as follows: - The cod livers are allowed to rot and ferment naturally - The fermentation breaks open the cells - The fat (not oil) rises to the surface - It is then centrifuged or separated without any additional processing - No heat above 96°F is applied - No solvents are used - No chemical treatments are applied - No flavoring agents or preservative oils are added

He said: "The only way you get a truly raw oil is by fermenting those cod livers, which breaks open the cells and releases the oils, and they centrifuge."

And in another passage: "All you have to do is go back to the old way. Have stinky, bad-tasting fish oil. You just ferment it and you separate it and don't do anything else with it."

He described the Green Pastures production basis: "All they do is they let the fish rot, rotten fish, and then they let the, that's of the liver, and then they let the oil rise, and it's fermented, it burns, it tastes nasty, it stinks. It's good. But that's what's good."

Some people asked about Green Pastures' skate liver oil as an alternative. Aajonus was clear: "The skate liver oil was not made using the same process of fermentation. No, it's not the same. They're using heat."

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Aajonus named Green Pastures specifically and by product name, Green Pastures Blue Ice Cod Liver Oil, non-flavored, as the one product he was aware of that met his standards. He stated: "It's the green pastures Blue Ice cod liver oil non-flavored. It stinks, it burns your throat. It's everything it should be for a fermented oil."

He worked with them for two years to develop it: "Now, there's one cod liver oil that I worked with Green Pastures to formulate over a two-year period. Every time they came back, what if we do this? I'd say, you can't do that because this will happen and it's now toxic and it doesn't work."

Aajonus provided a detailed verification standard for any oil product claiming to be raw and unprocessed. He said that to confirm legitimacy, you must receive in writing on the producer's letterhead that at no time does the oil come in contact with: - Any chemical, including but not limited to chlorine and alcohol - Any heat greater than 96°F from ocean or lake to commercial container

He specified: "Distributors cannot make any verifiable claims because they do not know the details of producing oils, only the producer of any oil knows the process." Executive confirmation is not sufficient, he stated: "I asked you to speak with the chief chemist for the company. If the president is also the chief chemist for the company, then his confirmation is probably accurate."

For any oil: "You have to call. I haven't investigated because I don't use supplements anymore. It's better just to go ahead and get the fish."

Aajonus described the pre-regulation product as the benchmark: "Fish oil, when you got it back then, it was cloudy, it had everything that the fish had. It was like juicing fish. And it was good substance."

He described encountering this at a time when he was in very serious medical distress: "At the time they had a cod liver oil which was pure. Like the green pastures is now. The non-flavored one. But it stinks. And it burns. And it's very bitter."

Aajonus described how to produce a comparable product at home. He said: "You can take any fish and do that. You just close it off into a tie jar and let it sit until the oil separates."

He gave a specific personal example using seal: "I took seal that I got from... you can only eat seal if you're a native Eskimo." He obtained it through native Eskimo connections and described: "I got three quarters of a cup of oil from three ounces of meat. And that oil, it's very, you know, it's what they would call rancid. It's very fermented and very potent. So I can only have a little at a time, but it's very effective."

He also described a method using fish liver more generally: "Go down to Chinatown somewhere and get some fish livers. And if you put them in a food processor and just spin them, you know, spin it in there, and let it sit for a day, the oil will go right to the top and you can spoon it off. And it will cost you one hundredth of what it costs."

He noted that different fish yield different amounts: "Cod is full of those oils. Some fish aren't. They don't separate that same way."

A question arose at one workshop about Rosita, a Norwegian company claiming to produce raw ratfish liver oil without fermentation and without industrial chemicals or heat. Aajonus's response: "No, they'd have to show me that process. Because we went over every process..." He did not endorse them and expressed skepticism, saying he had personally examined every process with the chemists and that any extraction without fermentation would require either heat or solvents to be effective.

Aajonus addressed fish oil in capsule form directly: "The capsules are, you know, some kind of either gelatin or it's cellulose. And neither of them are digestible and they clog up the system. So if you're going to do that, you have to make sure that that capsule wasn't heated, that it wasn't a hot capsule when they pressed and melted it together that damaged the oil."

He added: "And you have to make sure it's pressed under 82 degrees. And I cannot, I have not been able to find an oil extracted under 82 degrees without chemical extraction from fish in 20-some years."

He also noted that encapsulated oils have been "subjected to high temperatures when sealing each capsule, and absorb chemicals from the capsules. Capsules are all chemically and thermally processed."

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Aajonus did not specify a mandatory fat buffer for fermented unflavored cod liver oil in the same explicit way he did for some other substances. However, several contextual points emerge:

He described using it as a mouth rinse during his own cancer treatment, mixing it and working it around the gums to remove chemotherapy byproducts and other toxins. In that context, he said his "greatest concentration has always been found in oils or coconut cream" for discharging toxins from tissues, and that milk "doesn't discharge it" the way oils do.

He mentioned: "You don't want to blend them [eggs] unless you have cream with it or milk... All pressed oils are solvent reactive. They do not lubricate the system, they do not assuage the system, they do not heal the system. They are there to clean your system out. They are soaps. So you put that with the egg and you're going to create a massive detoxification." This warning about pressed oils applies to vegetable oils, but the principle of pairing is relevant context.

He described the cod liver oil in the context of a dietary pattern, "if you ate 60% butter and the fermented cod liver oil", suggesting butter is the natural companion food in the same dietary framework.

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As detailed above, Aajonus used fermented cod liver oil topically as a mouth rinse. This was a therapeutic application for removing chemotherapy residue and poisons from gum tissue and the oral cavity. The oil was swished and worked around the gums actively, held in the mouth, and used for 10–20 minutes per session, repeated approximately every 12 hours during active treatment.

This is distinct from oral ingestion. The key mechanism he observed: oils carry and discharge toxins from tissues in ways that milk and cream cannot achieve at the same concentration.

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When describing the extremely potent home-fermented seal oil he made, Aajonus said: "I can only have a little at a time, but it's very effective." This suggests high-potency fermented animal fat products should be used in small quantities.

Aajonus stated: "An oil never should go over 96 degrees Fahrenheit. 96 degrees Fahrenheit, it will start causing the liver." He applied this as the absolute upper temperature limit for any raw oil or fat. Green Pastures, in his collaboration with them, brought temperature down to 96 degrees.

For extraction purposes: "You have to make sure it's pressed under 82 degrees."

Since Aajonus found no clinical benefit for people at 90–100% Primal Diet compliance, there is no dosage protocol of significance for that population. He called it "a big waste of money" for people already eating the full diet.

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Aajonus did not describe specific culinary recipes using fermented unflavored cod liver oil. He positioned it primarily as a standalone food or supplemental fat taken directly, not as a culinary ingredient. His preference for other fats, raw butter, bone marrow, raw cream, as the primary fatty foods in daily Primal Diet eating is evident throughout his teachings.

He described home preparation for his own mouth rinse use and noted that making your own via fermentation of fish livers is straightforward and extremely inexpensive compared to commercial products:

Basic Home Method: 1. Obtain fish livers (e.g., from Chinatown) 2. Put them in a food processor and spin 3. Let sit for a day 4. Fat/oil rises to the top 5. Spoon it off

He stated: "It will cost you one hundredth of what it costs." He also noted: "It's minor what it will do", suggesting the homemade version at this simple level is less potent than a fully fermented commercial product.

For the fully fermented method, he described the jar method: "You just close it off into a tie jar and let it sit until the oil separates." This produces a rancid, very fermented, very potent product.

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Aajonus framed the fermented unflavored cod liver oil as itself the derivative product that stands alone, all other fish oil products are degraded derivatives of what this product should be but no longer is. He described a progression:

Before 1981 (pre-Reagan executive order): - Fish oil was cloudy, stinky, contained proteins, contained everything the fish had - "It was like juicing fish" - Bacteria could grow in it, which meant it was alive and real - "It stunk, it was cloudy, it had everything that the fish had, it was like juicing fish and it was good substance"

After 1981: - FDA mandated removal of all protein so bacteria cannot survive - Required heat and kerosene-based solvents to achieve this - All commercial fish oil became garbage

The fermented cod liver oil from Green Pastures represents Aajonus's attempt to restore the pre-1981 standard using fermentation rather than chemical extraction, the only method he recognized as capable of releasing the fat without contaminating it.

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Aajonus placed the degradation of fish oil in the same political context as the destruction of raw milk availability. He stated: "The FDA has said that it has to be purified to the point where all the proteins are out of it, so there's no bacteria can survive in it. To do that, it's a heat process."

He connected it to Reagan's executive order: "When Reagan signed a bill that says no raw food will cross state lines, that was the annihilation of raw milk that was available in all states through Altadena Dairy in California."

He specifically dated the end of good cod liver oil: "Cod liver oil is highly processed. It has to be purified both with a solvent and with heat. The FDA requires it, no protein in it or else it is an environment for bacteria. There's nothing good about cod liver oil anymore. The 82 is when it stopped."

He stated bluntly: "Everybody who puts out cod liver oil is good is full of, you know what. I'm not talking about healthy shit. Full of myth."

Aajonus described the standard industrial process for producing fish oil and all other commercial supplements: "They always have to treat it with a kerosene-based solvent, or heat and both, that separates all the protein out of it so bacteria won't grow in the oil."

He made the analogy viscerally explicit: "If you would soak your fish in kerosene for 30 minutes and then rinse it off and eat it, would you do that? Or do you think the kerosene is going to penetrate deep into that tissue? Well, that's mainly what you do. All supplements are treated with the kerosene derivative. All of them."

He acknowledged that kerosene is technically "natural" but made clear this does not make it safe: "How many of you would soak your food for 72 hours in kerosene and eat it? Dissolve it into soup? So it's full of kerosene."

Aajonus referenced the Pottinger cat study in which cod liver oil was given to cats eating an all-raw diet. He noted: "At that time, cod liver oil was not purified. It was good and stinky, and it was real. It was not processed oils from fish. Like everything is all purified now. It's a chemical. It's no longer good fish oil."

The implication is that the successful outcomes Pottinger observed with cod liver oil in his raw-fed cats were achieved using the pre-regulation, non-purified, genuinely fermented product, not anything available on the commercial market today.

Aajonus described the core commercial tension that prevented the good product from reaching the market: "So I got a company, finally talked them into making it, and they produced it, and guess what happened six months later? Is there any other way we can process, because it only lasts six months and we want to produce a product all year round. Because this cod, this fish, we can only get one time, one season a year, and it will only last six months."

His response was: "Sell it high, sell it rotten. That's okay." The company's response was to seek a way to make it last a year, which meant changing the process and inevitably compromising the product.

He concluded: "So again, it's all about money. It's all about what they can get." This fits into his broader teaching that the commercialization of health food inevitably corrupts it.

After Aajonus finished the two-year collaboration and verified the product was good, Green Pastures changed their processes to extend shelf life to one year, without informing Aajonus. He stated: "They did not contact me about their new processes or whether they changed the processes at all." He emphasized that confirmation of unchanged processes needed to come from the chief chemist, not from company executives or presidents, because executives are not reliable sources for confirmation of production details.

The one specific change that was communicated to him, adding organic virgin rosemary oil as an antioxidant in "minute quantities", he assessed as a contamination: "The rosemary oil is distilled and very toxic, solvent active." He noted the company planned to reestablish the product without it.

Aajonus described what is commercially sold as vitamin D: "They take not even food oil, not even vegetable oil. They'll take mineral oil, they'll hydrogenate, make it into plastic, and expose it to radioactive isotopes... So if we take oil and expose it to radioactive material, we've got vitamin D. 99% of all the vitamin D is made that way. It's not even vitamin D. It's plastic oil exposed to radioactive material."

He contrasted this with genuine vitamin D: "The only vitamin D that is truly vitamin D is from cod liver oil. And that'll be toxic if it isn't green pastures."

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