Without palm oil
Julie
What is palm oil?
Palm oil is vegetable oil extracted by hot pressing from the fruit of the oil palm, therefore the tree. The latter is native to Africa but has naturalized in other regions, notably in Southeast Asia.
Palm oil is arguably the most produced vegetable oil in the world and is used in several products, particularly in food and cosmetics. Nearly 50% of packaging contains palm oil, whether chocolate packaging or shampoo bottles. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, between 2018 and 2019 nearly 81.6 million tons of palm oil were produced.
Some estimate that the value of this market will reach $88 million. We may think that palm oil is essential in our everyday lives, but that is not true.
What is the problem ?
The palm oil debate is no secret. Although several developing economies rely on oil production to generate work for populations (nearly 3.5 million workers between Indonesia and Malaysia), this market is a main player in deforestation. According to some studies, since 2005, oil production has caused 56% of deforestation on the island of Borneo.
These significant deforestations cause the destruction of the habitats of many endangered species, including the orangutan, the pygmy elephant and many others. Not to mention the millions of tons of greenhouse gases that are produced.
Palm oil refineries discharge wastewater, a major source of methane. To get a clearer idea, a single pool of wastewater from oil is equivalent to the impact of 22,000 cars in one year.
Unfortunately, palm oil production is not only about the ecological aspect. Indeed, some regions still exploit workers and even children.
This industry has caused and continues to cause damage to the ecosystem and the populations concerned. However, there are things that can be done to reduce, or at least lessen, this damage.
How can we minimize this damage?
The most effective thing would be to simply avoid buying or using products containing palm oil. But as we mentioned earlier, this can be complicated given how many products include oil. Unfortunately it is not easy to change to another vegetable oil either. Palm oil is too 'effective' compared to other oils.
The best thing to do would be to learn about products that do not use palm oil and favor them. We take this issue very seriously, and we are absolutely against the use of this oil. You will notice that all our solid cosmetic products are organic, vegan and based on ingredients of 100% natural origin. None of our solid shampoos, shaving soaps or soaps in general contain palm oil, nor does our packaging. We ensure that our products have as little impact as possible on the environment and your health.
