What a number P&G, Colgate and other corporate giants have done to our heads. It is absolutely amazing. We have been so brainwashed. After generations of advertising, they have made even the NOTION of a DIFFERENT way to clean very, very tough to grasp. Well let’s break through. Let’s clear our heads. We can think for ourselves. THEIR way does not need to be OUR way. As much as THEY do not want us to realize it – WE HAVE OPTIONS! Soap nuts are one of those options.

All the little nuances that create confusion are intentionally being sidestepped. Some statements will be technically wrong – but SO true in getting to the heart of the matter. The purpose of this article is to help us change HOW we think – to clear the parts of our brains that have been clouded by generations of advertising and programming by some of the largest companies in the world.

So, what are soap nuts? Soap. Is THAT simple enough? And what does soap do? It cleans things. Now, we have just connected soap nuts to cleaning. We are on our way to a paradigm shift! So, what must soap nuts do? Clean things!

Think of soap nuts this way: They are soap that Mother Nature produces. It doesn’t come out of a big factory. She just grows it on trees. Huh? Hey, Mother Nature can do what she wants. She just does not get a paycheck, nor does she advertise. No differently than the accidental discovery of fire, ages ago someone found a fruit that made soap. So what did man discover about soap nuts? They cleans things. Hence, man discovered soap.

I thought it was a detergent? For the purpose of changing HOW we think, this does not matter at all. What DOES matter is that our brains start realizing that soaps, detergents, cleansers and cleaners DO NOT need to be manufactured. Are you getting it? The ONLY really important question is: What does it do? And the answer is: IT CLEANS THINGS!

Where do they come from? Trees. Simple. For the sake of even more simplicity, let’s not get hung up on the whole “nut” issue. For the purpose of this article, who cares exactly what it is? Also, let’s just call them Soap Trees. (Getting easier?) Trees produce seeds that allow them to grow baby trees. Right? Who cares if it is a fruit, nut, berry, acorn or whatever? If you take a handful of whatever they are – and can start lathering up with them – would it be like soap? Of course! Well, THAT is EXACTLY what soap nuts do. I hope that you are asking, “You mean there are trees that can GROW soap?” The answer is – YES!

Have we changed a little regarding HOW we think? Do we realize that all soaps and detergents don NOT need to be manufactured? Do we realize that Mother Nature has her own ready-to-use soap out there just waiting for us to find it? Do we realize that natural soaps were around that would clean our bodies and everything else, ages before there was ever a soap processing plant? BTW: Mother Nature has provided us many little gifts that clean things. Soap nuts just do it extremely well.

So, where have they been all this time? Again, Mother Nature does not work for profit – and THAT is WHY they are new to us – particularly those of us in the USA and Canada. Relatively speaking we are new kids on the block. It is mainly ancient cultures that understand soap nuts. People had already figured out how to make and sell other kinds of soap long before Columbus ever set foot on the shores of the West. If Mother Nature was profit oriented and had an executive and marketing team, her cleaning products would fill store shelves all around the world.

As an Asian Indian gentleman explained (surely similar to many from ancient origins): His family knows soap ONLY as soap nuts. They grew up with them. Be it to bathe, wash clothes, clean jewelry, or whatever their cleaning needs were – when they started cleaning, they broke out the soap nuts.

So, go get some soap nuts. Put a bunch of them in a wash bag or just wrap them in a washcloth. Get them totally wet with warm water and start scrubbing. Or take some and put them in warm water, let them soak a bit and shake them up. Guess what? You are going to start to see suds. And what do suds do? You got it. Try some in a wash bag for a load of laundry. Clean a window with some of that solution you just made. You WILL be amazed.

So, what is a soap nut? It is a fruit that grows on a tree that makes soap. It cleans things. That is what soap does. Understand THAT and you are home. You have just broken though and changed HOW you think. This article is by no means intended to convince you that soap nuts are the BEST way to clean. It is intended to show you another option you have. It is aimed at de-programming you from a lifetime of advertising. You have choices that very few know about. Soap nuts faded away into history – and that is exactly what many wanted.

Now we are in the beginning of a new – GREEN – age. More and more people are embracing the importance of finding a natural equilibrium with our world – to find a harmony with it once again. There are many age-old – and much greener ways – to do many of the things we do every day. Cleaning is only one of them. However, since cleaning is such a big part of our lives, understanding all our options is very important. Soap nuts are a fantastic one to know about.

So, what are soap nuts???? What do they do????

Chris

Soap nuts (the natural detergent that actually is found growing on trees) are not “nuts” (in this case you can take the term anyway you desire). They are actually a fruit most commonly referred to as a soapberry. Now, that had to sound really weird, huh? It’s no wonder people are confused. I just referred to a detergent as a fruit, and a detergent growing on trees. Jugs and bottles certainly don’t grow on trees. And also, I certainly would not call wine a grape. Are you confused, yet? I would be. It is my hope that this article clarifies a great deal about what soap nuts actually are. As your understanding grows, such seemingly stupid statements will actually begin to make sense. I’ve dedicated nearly a year intensely studying soap nuts and their inherent properties. From lab test to standing in front of the washing machine, countless hours have been spent. As a large US importer and a product formulator, that’s my job. I hope my work will save you precious time.

Again, soap nuts are a fruit. They produce a substance that is a natural detergent (or soap). It is called saponin. Sapo is actually Latin for soap. There are numerous botanical sources for saponin. What makes the soap nut so special is its extremely high concentration of saponin. It is the saponin that is Mother Nature’s own natural surfactant that effectively acts in the exact same way as a chemical detergent or soap.

Important break: “What the heck is a surfactant?” Excellent question! I’m so glad someone asked!

sur-fac-tant n. A substance or agent, for example, a detergent or a drug, that reduces the surface tension of liquids so that the liquid spreads out, rather than collecting in the form of droplets.

All detergents and soaps are essentially surfactants. It is surfactants that allow for the break up of dirt, grime, oil, grease, etc. in water – and thus enables things to be washed and become cleaned. It’s really that simple. (There are some minor exceptions but this is the KEY thing to realize about how detergents and soaps work.) It is just the fact that most surfactants – that we know of – have come out of chemical labs rather than grown by Mother Nature. I assure you they are not picking fruit at Procter and Gamble. At least not when making detergent. I bet this is beginning to make sense.

Somewhere throughout the ages people started calling the dried soapberries “nuts”. Why? Because they feel and look more like a nut than anything else. They are hard and dry (when they are ready for use) and even a nut-like color. If you picked one up off the ground, your first guess would be: “some kind of nut.” So, there you go. The rest is history. When growing on the tree, soap nuts remind me most of a cherry given their large seed size relative to its pulp and skin. As they are dried in the sun, they become wrinkled and then look reminiscent of a date or an overgrown (big time) raisin – just drier and harder. During their first couple months they will be yellowish to golden in color. As they age they will redden in color. As time continues, they will simply darken and shrink a bit in size. If properly stored in a cool dry environment they can last for years. As with nearly all dried natural or organic fruits, vegetables, etc., if they are not stored properly and allowed to become moist they will blacken and even grow molds. I would not recommend them at that point. (So much for common sense.)

Again, it is the soap nuts’ remarkable ability to produce saponin (that natural soap) in high levels that makes them so incredibly special – the ideal natural detergent, soap and cleaner. As a consumer, you receive them as simply the dried fruits with their seeds removed (usually). However, as an apple is not just an apple, or a grape is not just a grape, a soap nut is not just a soap nut. Do you think a vineyard cares about the type and quality of the grapes they grow? You bet – big time. If all is not right, a year’s harvest could become worthless. Now, the grape is probably the most extreme example that I can think of to make my point. Such is the beauty of extremes – the fundamentals are made easy to understand. It’s such fundamentals that we are going to apply to soap nuts.

Note: Again, the purpose of this article is to provide additional information about soap nuts that may lead to better personal experiences, and most importantly, to assist you in becoming a more informed seller and a greater asset to your customers. Many of you know the fundamentals, but we are now starting to drill into some very interesting nuances that can be puzzling for even the most informed of us.

Firstly, the type, variety and strain: As with grapes, they run the gamut. A vineyard is extremely particular regarding the grapes they grow. Different grapes will produce different wines. With soap nuts, we don’t need to go to that extreme for one reason: There is no culinary aspect to deal with. The value of a soap nut distills (pun intended) down to one thing – saponin. 100% pure saponin (other than the extraction process that can result in significantly different results and qualities) has no variables. It is what it is. It is the concentration of saponin that we must concern ourselves with. From species to species in the Sapindus tree family that grows across the globe, the soap nuts vary greatly. Without going into the many, many varieties in detail (that’s another long article), the fact is that the mukorossi variety contains the most consistently high concentration of saponin. Hence, it is the most prized and highest valued. The Florida soapberry for example is a soap nut, but it simply doesn’t work as well because its saponin concentration pales by comparison. Hence it is not the same as others. So far, easy, right?

Secondly, the harvest and back to grapes: The growers are very precise as to when they harvest. The grapes are checked daily. Only at their optimal point, depending on what the grower wants, are they harvested. Even a day can make a difference. Given that this is November, it is the perfect time of year to address this issue. To keep focus I will refer strictly to mukorossi harvests, albeit the fundamentals are the same for all.

At this time of year (October/November/December) the soapberry is maturing on the trees. From area to area and affected by the year’s weather in the area, we will find soap nuts at various stages in their development. We are dealing with both wild and plantation grown soap nuts. Last years harvest of soap nuts has become dark and the shells have shrunk somewhat in size. Only if stored properly will they still be dry (nut gummy or sticky). The new harvest is, of course, of highest demand and value. However, in the rush to bring newly harvested soap nuts to the market, many soap nuts are prematurely harvested. When prematurely harvested, soap nuts will be a bright gold to yellow color, but also they will be typically small (often in the 2cm range as compared to a mature soapberry at 4cm or larger).

A mature soap nut will have reached its peak in saponin content – the most important factor. Hence, not only are the prematurely harvested soap nuts wasteful in that another six to eight weeks could produce a much more bountiful harvest. But also, they will not be of the quality of a fully mature soap nut. Given drying and shipping times, look for the best quality newly harvested soap nuts to begin showing up in the US in late December, January and February. Properly stored soap nuts from last year’s harvest will be the better choice. If the soap nuts are very dark, gummy and sticky (as is often the case at this time), they have not been stored properly. Hence, look elsewhere for the best quality – regardless of time of year.

Thirdly, the results of inexperience: Most sellers of soap nuts know little more than the average user. Soap nuts are so new to the US and western hemisphere in general, that many sellers are selling only due to the fact that there is a market. Whenever there is a market, there will be sellers (and, of course, buyers). It is a caveat emptor (buyer beware) scenario. The quality of product the buyer receives is largely a function of the questions the buyers ask. Therefore, ASK QUESTIONS. Ask about the species, quality, condition, color and size. Don’t get too hung up on age. The shelf life of soap nuts is very long if properly stored and maintained. Again, ASK. Request representative samples if making a large purchase. Moisture build up, often due to condensation, is probably the leading causes for inferior quality soap nuts to come on the market. Be wary if you think they have been being stored in a garage somewhere (a common scenario). If you don’t get good answers, look for another seller. Be cautious of cheap prices without good, logical reasons. Improperly stored soap nuts are getting bad at this time. Sellers will “fire sale” them. You typically get what you pay for.

Lastly, bottom of the barrel hunting: The two main varieties that are being sold in the US are Sapindus Mukorossi and Sapindus Trifoliatus. Both grow in relatively close proximity, particularly in India. The trifoliatus variety is smaller and less effective. They are not as highly valued. Mixing the varieties is a very common practice among harvesters and exporters. Not even those that are very familiar with soap nuts can immediately identify the difference. Important note: A large amount of soap nuts are pre-packaged overseas for retail in the US to save on labor costs. (This “note” is worthy of its own article, so I will just drop it here.) Hence, not even most US and Canadian sellers can inspect them carefully. NaturOli, is an exception since the final packaging in done in the US. Soap nuts shipped by NaturOli have been hand inspected within only weeks of sale.

So, the bottom line: You need not be a connoisseur (as a wine master) to find quality soap nuts. The very simple, and even common sense, knowledge shared in this article should help you to make much better decisions. Be you a newbie or veteran to soap nuts, you want a good experience – and the most value for your money. Reliable quality and saponin content will ultimately lead to increased affordability. You will never again need to rewash a load, or use more soap nuts than required. A little knowledge goes a long, long way.

Understanding that soap nuts are Mother Nature’s fruits – not lab produced products – is the most critical aspect of being a good user and consumer of them. If you think of soap nuts as a fruit – be it a grape, cherry, or apple  – you are half way home.

At NaturOli, the common phrase one hears everyday is, “Together we can make a difference.” This is heartfelt. I ask of you to share you soap nut experiences with NaturOli. None of us know what we don’t know. As a collective, we all have so much to share – and we can all benefit by such sharing. Being highly informed, honest sellers, we will all develop life-long business and personal relationships. Your input is highly valued and always greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Chris