Every story can be nice, funny, sad or even dramatic.
Sometimes it is just nice to tell because it is filled with nice people and beautiful scenery.
This is ours, hopefully only the beginning.
It’s enough. My daughters confirm what my wife was telling me about her allergies and sensitivity. It is time to do something about these commercial shampoos. Thanks to my background experience in industrial products, knowing that there is a big business behind the commercial product that we find on the supermarket shelf, I start my research for ideas, replacements, and real alternatives.
My adventure began.
If you google the words “organic cosmetic and personal care”, the shampoo comes out on top of the list. The frustrating fact was that most of them were from 80% to 95% “organic”, but very few can prove with the ingredient list in reality.
Why? The surfactant, the bubble ingredient, the lathered component that makes the soft and white foam are connected or derivate from the sulfate family (S.L.S, SLES, or similar). So, psychologically everyone is convinced that NO FOAM=NO CLEAN originate the entire strategy of the big corporation. Still, they insist that their products are “Plant derivates…natural ingredients, organic 97%, or sulfate-free, parabens free or pointing the attention to other guilty elements. Many articles make the SLS the bad guys, and several companies defend the fact there was no proof about... Better read stickers, labels carefully and search around by yourself.
Me? I kept searching.
One day under the google keyword: “SLS replacement”.
I discover our superstar: Mr Soapnut, the exotic fruit from the plant Sapindus Rarak.
What? There is a fruit that makes soap?
There is no magic or any tricks; the real fact here is that there are no tricks. It is a natural chemical reaction (saponin) that happens to come from the shells of this little fruit. Their outer shells that contain saponin create a natural soap when agitated in water. This Is a natural way to make bubbles, the unique way to break the dirt on every surface.
I will explain in detail later, but basically, this is it.
ORGANIC 100%, is this possible?
We can also say the fake one, or the less lier because too many products say, declare, emphasize on labels or ads that they are organic but believe or not, this is not true, or at least is not true at 100% especially for the big corporation that they cannot keep their profit with 100% organic ingredients. So, what they do: they not say lies, they don’t’ tell the truth.
Nah, I am sure you already knew that. So the answer is if it is possible is NO. 100% organic is not possible.
With the alternatives available and my sceptical mind, it took me a few seconds to realize what it is all about, but it took me a while to understand. The use of chemical ingredients inside our daily products cannot be healthy or unharmful, as the big company say. Period.
There are consequences on this fact, somebody or something will be hurt from this behaviour. We are responsible for leaving a better place for our children and me, the father of two beautiful girls; the burden is big. I felt to do something.
I was aware that substitute the chemical surfactant (SLS, SLES, etc.) in a product that must make many bubbles was delicate, I tried for some of the product I was supervising in the Jewelry applications, but the results were always … not strong enough, degreasing was not sufficient.
Born of the idea and the project.
After a long sharing idea time, the frustration accumulated during my research of alternatives to SLS and my disappointing point that surfactant is only chemicals. If you talk with a local chemicals company, they laugh at you because nothing is cheaper than SLS.
So why change? Environmental responsible, what? They laugh.
During a conversation with my Thai friends, they ask me if I was aware of the Sapindus family trees. I reply that it would be fantastic but based on my little knowledge, I know that they are growing only in the Nepal area(Sapindus Mukorossi). There are many others in different areas. Sapindus families normally grow around the tropical line (you can check here). There is not too much public knowledge, but most of this information is the use of powder of soapnuts as medical treatments for skin or hair fall or antibacterial use, especially here in Thailand.
What if I tell you if they are growing here and a lot?
What? I was excited.
They told me about these trees in the north of Thailand. They grow naturally in the forest, and they make once a year this fantastic little fruit. The Hill Tribe knows this from the century. Generation by generation, they know where they are, when is the right moment, and harvest them with knowledge without harming the trees in any way. They pick in the particular technique they know from generation, and they bring it to the village where all families and friends sit down to select the best fruit and remove the black seed inside.
The seeds go to make art objects (monks’ bracelets or religious artefacts). The shells are selected (the nice ones) and set aside. After the period of a natural dry process, they pack them, and they are ready to deliver.
Simple, efficient, natural, clean, in one word: awesome.
I hope you will try our products and tell us about your experience with our soapnuts.
A little note before close: natural, organic, green, or environmentally friendly are words, not facts. Trust the company means checking what they are selling, not just a good smell or a beautiful bottle because the influencer told you so. It is easy now to check the lies.
Aoy Apiwong & Paolo Conselvan, founders, sincerely welcome you.