Palm Oil
Not as innocent as it seems.
Not One, Not two but Seven Vegetable oils And not a Wiff of Palm Oil or Any of It's Derivatives
From the start of my soap making journey which has become a love and delight , my main objective was to make a soap that I love to use myself, and that is very moisturizing or beneficial in some way and great for all the family.
The first soaps I made contained palm oil as it is traditionally considered the cornerstone of a soap making recipe but I soon realized the implications of the production of palm oil and I was not willing to be part of that, even so called
' Sustainable ' palm production has required the clearing of virgin rainforest.
After endless trials and oil combinations ,I finally felt Eureka was in order and so my soap was born.
I use six vegetable oils in each recipe and then complete the recipe with a specialty oil to offer a different feel or quality to the finished bar of soap. The six constant oils in every bar are Olive oil, coconut oil , rapeseed oil, cocoa butter, rice bran oil and castor oil and I then add an additional oil such as Almond, kukui nut oil , jojoba, sheanut butter, mango butter or avocado oil to each recipe so offer an extra special individual quality.
I use only natural colorants from botanicals , natural plant based colourants or spa clays which generally happily bring additional beneficial qualities to the soap and I mostly use essential oils except where they are price prohibitive.
Palm Oil Production
Palm oil is used almost exclusively in modern commercial soap making as it is cheap,stable and it creates
a firm white bar of soap ,unfortunately this is where the positive aspects end as it offers little
in the way of moisturizing qualities for your skin.
The images of land clearing shown above are the least heartbreaking I could find. Please search palm oil
production / images for yourself to see the devastation and cruelty to animals caught up in the process.
Currently there are 27 million hectares worldwide devoted solely to palm oil production,
equating to 66.86 million tonnes in 2017
Vast tracts of virgin terrain is cleared annually now in multiple countries to keep up with demand as it is also used
in a wide variety of food, cosmetic and hygiene products, and can be used as source for bio-fuel or bio-diesel.
Countries where palm oil is grown are throughout Africa, Asia, North America, and South America, with 85% of all palm oil globally produced and exported from Indonesia and Malaysia; but most of the time not using sustainable measures.
The Sumatran orangutan, elephant & tiger all critically endangered as well as the Bornean Orangutan & pygmy elephants are being driven to extinction, along with thousands of lesser species, through loss of habitat.
Furthermore, these forested areas often lie on tropical peat soils and with the enormous carbon stored here is being released contributing dramatically to global warming.
There are few upsides to this.
Join us and be part of the solution to reduces the demand for Palm Oil.
GET BETTER INFORMED
VISIT
THE WORLD WILDLIFE FUND
https://wwf.panda.org/our_work/food/sustainable_production/palm_oil/
For a general overview visit
Reduce your palm oil footprint further and find out what other products use palm oil and which brands don't.
Make a positive and informed choices exercise consumer power to bring about a reduction in the use of palm oil in everyday items visit to find out more
For further information about Palm Oil and deforestation ,it's uses in other foods and household products and if you would like to petition to stop current planned deforestation have a look at https://www.rainforest-rescue.org/topics/palm-oil