How are you offsetting the cost of Olive Oil?

[lsg]

I substitute rice bran oil for olive oil. They are similar in properties when used in soap.

 

[Saffron]

Rice bran oil is as expensive as olive oil here in the UK

 

[dibbles]

At Soaper's Choice avocado oil is less expensive than olive oil. Hard to believe

 

[wy234]

Wow, I had no idea olive oil had jumped this much, I haven't bought any since maybe October last year, when I could get it for 17 cents an oz at walmart and now walmart is 33 cents an oz.

 

[dmcgee5034]

I was at Restaurant Depot and Rice Bran Oil was $42.01 for 35 pounds. I don’t know what I’d do with 35 pounds but isn’t that a steal??

 

[AliOop]

I was at Restaurant Depot and Rice Bran Oil was $42.01 for 35 pounds. I don’t know what I’d do with 35 pounds but isn’t that a steal??

That's just about 4.5 gallons, so not too bad, really. Could you portion it into smaller gallon containers, add some ROE, and then refrigerate each container until you are ready to use it?

 

[dmcgee5034]

That's just about 4.5 gallons, so not too bad, really. Could you portion it into smaller gallon containers, add some ROE, and then refrigerate each container until you are ready to use it?

Good idea! Once my OO supply is a bit more depleted, I might have to give it a go.

 

[Ford]

Wow! Oh my gawd! Boing! Just checked out OO. At my local wally world. 3 liter bottle. Up $10.00! Usually grab a bottle. But haven't last couple of visits.

Let me see ....25% canola, 25% vegetable, 25% walmart vegetable/palm, 25% walmart tallow/lard......... where's that 1 pound test mold?

 

[Mobjack Bay]

The organic high oleic sunflower oil at Trader Joe's was still $3.99 for a 33.8 [fluid] oz bottle when I was there earlier this week. That's less than 12 cents per fluid oz.

 

[Kaybrantley]

I use 40% lard in my recipe. I have been substituting OO with RB and Sunflower. Safflower is ok but at concentrations greater than 10% , it can cause DOS

 

[Lynn Miglets]

I’m experimenting with HO canola and HO sunflower this weekend. I don’t really sell yet, so I’m not married to OO. I think tweaks will be needed for sure, but that is part of the fun, right?

 

[MelissaG]

Well, I definitely will not be using Sunflower from now on. It makes for such an incredibly soft bar even at an 80/20 mix (Sunflower/OO). So now I'm looking for something else. Rice Bran seems to now be the same price as OO. I was looking at maybe Avocado? It's cheaper than either right now. Wondering if I should replace OO with lard for the moment. I really don't want to but the prices have just exploded. $30 for a 3L. I know that's better than most locations in the country but last year at this time, it was $9.97. Sams Club hasn't carried it in weeks and you now have to order it in.

 

[Ford]

Hi, @MelissaG. I use HO sunflower as a supplement. To my recipe. 20% Do you use any hard oils?

 

[MelissaG]

Hi, @MelissaG. I use HO sunflower as a supplement. To my recipe. 20% Do you use any hard oils?

Yes, lard, coconut oil and shea butter. Think the hard oils comprise 60% of my recipe already. I also use 5% apricot kernel and 5% castor with the rest as olive. My last two batches I used 80% sunflower/20% olive and they are so soft even after 2 months that I'm not sure I'll ever be able to sell these. I broke my ankle two months ago so haven't been able to make anything since then. About three weeks from now, I have a doctor appt and I really hope he gives me clearance to start doing most of my regular stuff again even if I can't go to market yet (due to all the driving and heavy lifting). I need to plan for when I do. I love playing video games but honestly, I'm kind of bored and want to go back to work.

 

[Vicki C]

I really like HO sunflower and have not found my soap to be soft at all. @MelissaG was yours HO sunflower or regular sunflower? The fatty acid profile of HO sunflower is almost identical to olive oil, but it is lighter in color and I think easier to work with, slightly slower trace. I’m not looking back. I tried HO soy and I really liked it too.
Someone on FB said they got DOS in all their sunflower soap, but I wonder if maybe their oil was old. I have not seen any DOS. Also, helps to use ROE and a chelator. And I use sodium lactate in almost all of my soap.

 

[Mobjack Bay]

My experience is the same as @Vicki C with respect to HO Sunflower. It has a bit less palmitic compared with OO, but it's easy to compensate for that by adding a bit more lard, or whatever hard fat is in the recipe. When I sub one oil in for another, I check and adjust the oil and fat percentages as necessary to ensure that the fatty acid percentages (stearic + palmitic, oleic, etc.) match up between original and new recipe.

 

[cmzaha]

I am so glad I retired from selling back during Covid, it is just about impossible to make money any more and I was selling to make money not a hobby.
I noticed that 50 lbs of lard is now $63.99 and I used to pay $36.00. Tallow shortening was around $96 the last time I saw it there, I used to pay around $46 for 50 lb. Same goes for the business Costco stores.

 

[DeeBeeSNJ]

I think that rice bran oil would be a good choice and you could reduce the percentage of butters a bit too. High oleic sunflower and high oleic canola oil would be good too. If these are not available then you should use canola oil and increase the percentage of butters in your recipe. Add salt at the rate of 3% to 5% of water in your soap and also citric acid, rosemary oleoresin extract and vitamin E oil will help reduce DOS in soap with canola oil. Adding beeswax with add a lot of hardness to soap and you could reduce the percentage of butters in the soap instead.

I’ve been substituting maybe half of my recipe with the rice bran oil and they have been coming out beautifully.

 

[Simple Suds]

I was substituting some OO with RB however my soaps were starting to trace much quicker, and I do some 3-4 color designs. Also the tops were cracking, and I soap around 80 degrees. Soap still felt great, but I couldn’t handle the issues RB was causing.

 

[AliOop]

I was substituting some OO with RB however my soaps were starting to trace much quicker, and I do some 3-4 color designs. Also the tops were cracking, and I soap around 80 degrees. Soap still felt great, but I couldn’t handle the issues RB was causing.

RBO can oxidize faster, which causes faster tracing. Be sure it is very fresh, and consider adding ROE immediately upon purchase.