Lorrie Posted March 1, 2010 Share Posted March 1, 2010 I have heard people ask for palm free soap. What the deal with this? I understand why some people don't wish to have animal fats or by products in it but I am not sure the angle of Palm.. Can someone explain please? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssolis Posted March 1, 2010 Share Posted March 1, 2010 Lorrie, it has to do with the environment.Wikipedia describes:"Palm oil production has been documented as a cause of substantial and often irreversible damage to the natural environment. Its impacts include: deforestation, habitat loss of critically endangered species, and a significant increase in greenhouse gas emissions. The pollution is exacerbated because many rainforests in Indonesia and Malaysia lie atop peat bogs that store great quantities of carbon that are released when the forests are cut down and the bogs drained to make way for the palm oil plantations. Environmental groups such as Greenpeace claim that the deforestation caused by making way for oil palm plantations is far more damaging for the climate than the benefits gained by switching to biofuel."However, there are companies, such as Brambleberry that sell sustainable palm oil.Sandi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuminousBoutique Posted March 1, 2010 Share Posted March 1, 2010 I do palm free soap, and the same goes for palm wax- because its of course made from palm oil. I learned about it in college, I watched a few documentaries on it, and I just couldnt fathom using it in my products after seeing how damaging it is. The world demand for Palm products is expected to double by 2020, because its being used in cakes, cookies, soaps, candles, its in everything. There are less and less places to grow it.. so what will happen? Even more clear cutting. Even more destruction and deforestation. But its all in personal preference. Some people don't think its a big deal, others are really passionate about it... personally after seeing how destructive it is, and how badly the workers who forest it are treated (its like blood diamonds. They are abused.) I refuse to use and buy palm products. But I don't judge anyone who does... and I don't think its possible to remove it from the market any time soon. Its in tons of foods, cookies and pastries... breads... its in Crisco now... its in ALOT of stuff we wouldn't even think, so the market is clearly out there and not going away fast. I wish there were more sustainable farms, and I wish it was less expensive.. but the reason its cheap is because of the destructive way its grown. So to me, its a personal ethics question. Am I OK with supporting the destruction of rain forest, the killing of endangered animals, and the bad treatment of thousands of workers? No I am not. And how do we KNOW that is sustainable palm? Anyone can claim anything they want... do we KNOW that farm's workers are treated well? do we KNOW the runoff isnt poisoning the local water and soil? Spectrum claims they are sustainable.. which is great. http://www.spectrumorganics.com/?id=269But like I said before... we have no real way to know, so we have to take their word for it. I just choose to avoid it altogether.http://www.rspo.org/ is a great resource for info on it too.... but they are owned/operated BY PO and PKO owners, growers, farmers... so its hard to believe some of what they say, for that reason.This is a poster I display in my booth.. to inform my customers why I dont use Palm or PKO. The only "palm" product I use is Palm Stearic, because I really dont have an option... my shop is vegan, so I cant use stearic from an animal source. I'm researching if there are other kids of stearic, but as far as I've found (and I've spoken with multiple suppliers) that its palm if its not animal based. Its hard to tell, because its generally just sold as "veggie based stearic."Again.. it all comes down to personal preference. I go out of my way in my daily life to avoid buying products with palm, or PKO.. I cant buy many baked goods because they do contain it, generally. Commercial dish soaps, laundry dtergents.. alot of them contain it (Palmolive, anyone?)... Its really up to each and every one of us to decide whether or not we are OK with it.I know my soap is just fine without it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craftedinthewoods Posted March 1, 2010 Share Posted March 1, 2010 Just curious if coconut oil falls into this problem as well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuminousBoutique Posted March 1, 2010 Share Posted March 1, 2010 Just curious if coconut oil falls into this problem as well?Not that I've heard. The coconut palm is a different kind of palm...and coconuts are grown all over the world, where palm oil production is based primarily out of three areas, which are home to endangered species and rapidly disappearing wetlands and rainforest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssolis Posted March 1, 2010 Share Posted March 1, 2010 Lum,Thanks for all of this information! I'll take it to heart and deeply consider my other options!Sandi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topofmurrayhill Posted March 2, 2010 Share Posted March 2, 2010 Thing is, it's not that the market isn't going away any time soon; it's that the market isn't going away at all.For certain applications, palm oil is used because of its fatty acid profile. There are no viable substitutes in that regard except for animal fats. But even for the wider range of applications, the trend is simply towards the use of palm oil from certifiably sustainable sources. Major corporations have committed to purchasing only such certified oil, and that seems to be the future of the palm oil market.One can't really say that people all over the world are suffering because of palm oil production except for a few evil capitalists and their customers. There are many people gainfully employed in the production of palm oil and it's important to various economies and the standard of living in those countries.Since we're not about to use less palm oil, what makes sense to me is that concerned people should buy it from good sources, to support those sources, and not buy it from bad sources. I would not hesitate, for instance, to buy IGI or CandleScience palm wax. http://www.candlescience.com/learning/palm-wax-and-the-environment.php Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CareBear Posted March 2, 2010 Share Posted March 2, 2010 Since we're not about to use less palm oil, what makes sense to me is that concerned people should buy it from good sources, to support those sources, and not buy it from bad sources. I would not hesitate, for instance, to buy IGI or CandleScience palm wax. http://www.candlescience.com/learning/palm-wax-and-the-environment.phpI couldn't agree more. Let's make a positive contribution by making a responsible choice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitn Posted March 2, 2010 Share Posted March 2, 2010 I totally agree with making responsible choices. I do that a lot in my way of living too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lorrie Posted March 2, 2010 Author Share Posted March 2, 2010 Thank you for all the information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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