Olive oil in CP

[ResolvableOwl]

Just an idea – since soap suppliers sell non-food-grade stuff, maybe their contaminant thresholds are more lax than supermarkets/gastro suppliers, including FFAs and nasty process aids like hexane. I'm not saying it's inferior quality (from the soapmaking perspective), but the tighter regulations for food-grade OO might well make it behave more predictable than wholesale technical/cosmetic-grade OO.

 

[Mobjack Bay]

I have a jug of OO right now that I bought to make OO soaps in particular. It’s a brand from the local grocery store that I’ve used before without issues. This time the oil is very fast to trace. Expiration date is fine. Alas, there’s no slow soaping fun happening and I’ll be using it in a batch of white soap. I prefer to use Costco OO, but the nearest Costco is 45 min from my house and I sometimes run out before I can restock.

 

[Arimara]

Just an idea – since soap suppliers sell non-food-grade stuff, maybe their contaminant thresholds are more lax than supermarkets/gastro suppliers, including FFAs and nasty process aids like hexane. I'm not saying it's inferior quality (from the soapmaking perspective), but the tighter regulations for food-grade OO might well make it behave more predictable than wholesale technical/cosmetic-grade OO.

Some suppliers sell food grade oils and butters, including several US suppliers we buy from. They usually state that because they sell these items for cosmetic purposes, they don't advise people use their products for food.

 

[earlene]

Hi..I'm from India. Could you please tell me what is regular olive oil?? Is it a blend of refined olive oil and extra virgin?? In India we have few brands like disano, delmonte etc.. but those are ideal for cooking. They have Extra virgin, classic, extra light and pomace. Among these which comes under regular olive oil??

When I use the term 'regular' olive oil, I am referring to OO that is NOT Extra Virgin and NOT pomace and also not extremely expensive. That is my only criteria for 'regular'. There is no 'regular' grade for OO here in the US; it is simply my way of differentiating between the higher & lower grades as well as cost of olive oils.

For me, it comes down to cost. If I was in a country where a higher quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil was the least expensive, that is what I would use in my soap. I don't use it here because it is the most expensive. I only use pomace when I want fast trace, because for me it traces very fast at room temperature when hand stirring only. (I don't use a SB with pomace olive oil.)


In India, I see 6 grades of OO as per this link:

~~~ (open quote)
Quality factors

Refined olive oil:
It is obtained from refining methods which do not lead to alteration in the initial glyceridic structure and it has a free fatty acid (FFA), expressed as oleic acid (which is a powerful anti-oxidant) of not more than 0.3 gram per 100 gram. (FFA is considered as an indicator of freshness and quality)

Olive oil: A blend of refined olive oil and virgin olive oil suitable for human consumption and it has FFA of not more than 1 gram per 100 gram

Extra virgin oil: Virgin olive oil with FFA of not more than 0.8gram per 100 gram

Virgin olive oil: Virgin oil with FFA of not more than 2.0 gram per 100 gram

Ordinary virgin oil: Virgin olive oil with FFA of not more than 3.3 gram per 100 gram

Refined olive-pomace oil: Oil obtained from crude olive-pomace oil by refining methods which do not lead to alterations in the initial glyceridic structure and has a FFA of not more than 0.3 gram per 100 gram

Olive-pomace oil: A blend of refined olive-pomace oil and virgin olive oil and it has a FFA of not more than 1 gram per 100 gram
~~~ (end quote)


The fact that you can only find some of them in your local market, means the others probably don't sell as well, so it doesn't pay for the vendor to stock all grades. If I were in your place, I would choose the least expensive to use in my soap, unless I wanted a very white soap, in which case I may choose a more expensive lighter colored OO, or I'd add Titanium Dioxide to whiten the soap.

Another note: Some soapmakers do use the more expensive EVOO because for them, it means better quality oils are in the soap they sell. For me as a consumer, I do not believe it makes enough difference in the quality of the soap, so as a soapmaker I don't bother. But I also do not sell soap; perhaps if I did, I would find that some customers prefer seeing "Extra Virgin Olive Oil" on the label instead of "Olive Oil". (But if INCI names were used, they would not really know unless the label so indicated.) Also some soapmakers will not use pomace olive oil because they prefer not to use an oil extracted using harsh chemicals, and I respect that they adhere to their standards.

ETA: I keep trying to fix that quote, but it won't fix.... so annoying. Finally, I got it fixed by simply removing the open quotes & close quotes. The tildes are taking their place.

 

[winusuren]

When I use the term 'regular' olive oil, I am referring to OO that is NOT Extra Virgin and NOT pomace and also not extremely expensive. That is my only criteria for 'regular'. There is no 'regular' grade for OO here in the US; it is simply my way of differentiating between the higher & lower grades as well as cost of olive oils.

For me, it comes down to cost. If I was in a country where a higher quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil was the least expensive, that is what I would use in my soap. I don't use it here because it is the most expensive. I only use pomace when I want fast trace, because for me it traces very fast at room temperature when hand stirring only. (I don't use a SB with pomace olive oil.)


In India, I see 6 grades of OO as per this link:

~~~ (open quote)
Quality factors

Refined olive oil:
It is obtained from refining methods which do not lead to alteration in the initial glyceridic structure and it has a free fatty acid (FFA), expressed as oleic acid (which is a powerful anti-oxidant) of not more than 0.3 gram per 100 gram. (FFA is considered as an indicator of freshness and quality)

Olive oil: A blend of refined olive oil and virgin olive oil suitable for human consumption and it has FFA of not more than 1 gram per 100 gram

Extra virgin oil: Virgin olive oil with FFA of not more than 0.8gram per 100 gram

Virgin olive oil: Virgin oil with FFA of not more than 2.0 gram per 100 gram

Ordinary virgin oil: Virgin olive oil with FFA of not more than 3.3 gram per 100 gram

Refined olive-pomace oil: Oil obtained from crude olive-pomace oil by refining methods which do not lead to alterations in the initial glyceridic structure and has a FFA of not more than 0.3 gram per 100 gram

Olive-pomace oil: A blend of refined olive-pomace oil and virgin olive oil and it has a FFA of not more than 1 gram per 100 gram
~~~ (end quote)


The fact that you can only find some of them in your local market, means the others probably don't sell as well, so it doesn't pay for the vendor to stock all grades. If I were in your place, I would choose the least expensive to use in my soap, unless I wanted a very white soap, in which case I may choose a more expensive lighter colored OO, or I'd add Titanium Dioxide to whiten the soap.

Another note: Some soapmakers do use the more expensive EVOO because for them, it means better quality oils are in the soap they sell. For me as a consumer, I do not believe it makes enough difference in the quality of the soap, so as a soapmaker I don't bother. But I also do not sell soap; perhaps if I did, I would find that some customers prefer seeing "Extra Virgin Olive Oil" on the label instead of "Olive Oil". (But if INCI names were used, they would not really know unless the label so indicated.) Also some soapmakers will not use pomace olive oil because they prefer not to use an oil extracted using harsh chemicals, and I respect that they adhere to their standards.

ETA: I keep trying to fix that quote, but it won't fix.... so annoying. Finally, I got it fixed by simply removing the open quotes & close quotes. The tildes are taking their place.

Thank you so much for your reply.