Product Overview
Our organic unrefined Baobab Oil is sourced from the seeds of the fruit of Adansonia digitata that grows in 32 African countries and Australia. While the tree is a traditional source of food, medicine, water, clothing and more, the seeds of the fruit are removed for extraction of their versatile and vitamin-rich oil – a real boon to dry skin, but also a sensible choice for massage, hair, nails and feet. Like avocado oil, Baobab Oil is deeply moisturizing and skin softening. It contains a high percentage of unsaturated fatty acids, particularly Oleic and Linoleic acids, and displays very good oxidative stability even without added antioxidants. It is expeller pressed and paper filtered, but otherwise unrefined.
Our supplier’s new processing plant, located in Senegal, is Social Responsibility Certified by the Swiss IMO (Institute for Marketecology). Total traceability is maintained from harvest to finished bulk products, and of the 2,000-2,500 employees, women represent 70% of the production staff and 90% of the farmers. Respect for the people, their lives and their land are summed up in the company’s motto: Because local is social.
A member of the hibiscus (Malvaceae) family, Baobab is sometimes called The Tree of Life (as well as Bottle Tree, Upside-Down Tree, and Monkey Bread Tree) and is considered to be the largest succulent plant in the world – it absorbs and stores tremendous amounts of water during the rainy season. Baobab flowers are pollinated by bats that make their home along with hundreds of other species in its ample branches, crevices and hollows. The resulting fruits take about six months to completely dry on the tree (the only fruits in the world that do so). These immense and powerful trees, some of which may live as long as 6,000 years, were even immortalized in Saint Exupéry’s The Little Prince, threatening to destroy entire planets with their ancient, massive trunks.
Please Note: our Baobab oil is unrefined and naturally contains a higher level of plant waxes which can lead to wax formation when the product gets cold. Crystal ‘flakes’ may appear at temperatures below 70°F due to solidifying waxes. We recommend gently warming the oil to above 70°F before use to avoid cold crystallization.
Want to know more about how to use Baobab Oil as a base for your essential oil blends? Read Dilution Solutions to learn about essential oil to carrier oil ratios and how to mix essential oils with carrier oils.
