Ingredient Spotlight: Argan Oil

Ever seen images of goats in trees? They’re after the fruit of the argan tree - we use the kernel inside the nut for eating and for skincare.

If you’ve been following along with Alchemy for a while, you’ll notice a couple of trends in our beauty products.

1. We love skincare that comes from edible plants

2. We love oils!

Argan Oil checks both boxes. It comes from the milled nut inside the fruit of the argan tree.

The scrubby trees only grow in a specific region of the small North African country of Morocco.

Sometimes called Moroccan Oil, it may seem that argan oil exploded on the skincare scene just a couple of decades ago. There is evidence however that Amazigh women have used the oil in skincare preparations for a couple thousand years. The oil is effective skincare and haircare.

The process of extracting the oil is pretty arduous and time consuming. Attempts made to mechanize steps along the way have been unsuccessful. Most of the work is done by hand, and mostly by women. 

Culinary argan and cosmetic argan are largely processed the same way except the cosmetic argan oil is not toasted.

• The fleshy pulp of the fruit is dried and removed and used as animal feed

• The nut is then cracked and the kernel is removed

• The nut is used as fuel, and the kernel ground for oil

• The kernel is removed and ground

• The oil is expressed from the meal

• The pressed cake is then dried and often used to feed cattle

We find it super compelling that all along the way, all the pieces are used and there is very little waste.

So what makes the oil so good for your skin?

One reason the argan oil is so magical is the linoleic acid. These little molecules soothe skin, reduce inflammation and improve moisture retention. When argan oil is combined with other nutrient rich oils, it aids the absorption of the companion oils for deeper penetration due to oleic acid.

Argan Collectives from Agadir to Essouaira -

While visiting the argan collectives we had a chance to sample the oil in its raw state and the oil extracted from the toasted nut. We witnessed the labor-intense prepping and grinding of the oil. Plus, we got to cuddle some goats.

The toasted oil is often used as a dressing or a dip. And it is blended with ground almonds to create a delicious paste called Amlu, used the same way as Nutella.

Find Argan Oil in our Prickly Pear Serum