Palm oil/fat

Palm oil, also known in soap making as palm fat, is one of the basic fats for making soap and firmer balms. In a formulation it acts as a structural fat : it adds body and firmness where liquid oils alone would stay too soft. It is supplied in food grade quality of European origin and is readily biodegradable. Besides soap making, it is used in the oil phase of creams, body butters and solid products, where it helps to firm up the consistency. What it is good for Soap hardness – in cold process soap it is one of the fats that give hard bars with a longer life. It complements softer oils such as olive or sunflower oil. Stable lather – it helps to maintain the creamy and longer-lasting lather produced by coconut or palm kernel oil. For this reason, classic recipes combine it with them. Balm consistency – in anhydrous products it replaces part of the wax or butter. The result is firmer than with pure liquid oils, yet it spreads well and melts on the skin. Skin feel – it leaves a nourishing film that helps the skin to retain moisture. Use in a formulation Palm oil is insoluble in water and miscible with other oils, so it belongs exclusively in the oil phase . When making emulsions, it is melted together with the other fats, waxes and the emulsifier, and only then combined with the water phase. There is no point in adding it cold directly to a finished emulsion, as it will not disperse evenly and will form lumps. When making cold process soap, melt the palm oil first together with the other solid fats and mix the liquid oils into the melted blend afterwards. This gives you a hom