Safety Substantiation for Soap

Jun 15, 2024 Article Public

Marie's Corner > MoCRA Compliance > General

One of the new requirements under MoCRA is that all cosmetic products must have safety substantiation. While that may sound daunting, for true soap (saponified oils) it's actually pretty easy!

In 2017, the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel published Safety Assessment of Plant-Derived Fatty Acid Oils in the International Journal of Toxicology. It details the safety of fatty acids from 110 plants. It included the oils themselves and, in many cases, covered hydrogenated or saponified forms of the oils.

All the oils were found safe as used in cosmetics (and that would include the saponified oils as soap).

Plant oils covered in the safety assessment were:

Abyssinian mustard seed oil
Acai fruit oil
Amaranth seed oil
Apple seed oil
Apricot kernel oil
Argan kernel oil
Artichoke seed oil
Avocado oil
Babassu seed oil
Bilberry seed oil
Blackcurrant seed oil
Blueberry seed oil
Boabab oil
Boji berry seed oil
Borage seed oil
Brazil nut oil
Broccoli seed oil
Burdock seed oil
Canola oil
Cashew oil
Cherry (sweet) seed oil
Chilean hazel seed oil
Cocoa butter
Coconut oil
Cohune seed oil
Corn oil
Cotton seed oil
Cloudberry seed oil
Cranberry seed oil
Cucumber seed oil
Currant seed oil
Dika kernel butter
Dog rose fruit oil
Evening Primrose oil
False Flax seed oil

Galip seed oil
Grape seed oil
Grapefruit seed oil
Hazel nut seed oil
Job's tears seed oil
Kale seed oil
Kaya seed oil
Kiwi seed oil
Kokum seed butter
Kukui nut oil
Lemon seed oil
Lingonberry seed oil
Lime seed oil
Linseed seed oil
Luffa seed oil
Macadamia seed oil
Mahwa seed mutter
Mango seed oil
Marula seed oil
Meadowfoam seed oil
Mongongo kernel oil
Moringa seed oil
Murumuru seed butter
Nepali butter tree (Chiuri) seed oil
Niger seed oil
Noni seed oil
Oat kernel oil
Olive oil
Orange seed oil
Palm kernel oil
Palm oil
Passion fruit seed oil
Payaya seed oil
Peach kernel oil
Peanut oil

Pecan seed oil
Pequi fruit oil
Perilla seed oil
Pistachio seed oil
Pomegranate seed oil
Prune/Plum seed oil
Pumpkin seed oil
Quinoa seed oil
Rapeseed seed oil
Raspberry seed oil
Rice bran oil
Sacha inchi seed oil
Safflower seed oil
Sea Buckthorn oil
Sesame seed oil
Shea butter
Soybean oil
Strawberry seed oil
Sunflower seed oil
Sweet almond oil
Tea seed oil
Thistle seed oil
Tomato fruit and seed oil
Vegetable oil
Walnut oil
Watermelon seed oil
Wheat germ oil
White lupine seed oil

If you look up any of these items in the HSCG Ingredient Look-Up, you can find more information and a link to the Safety Assessment.

Glycerin

When you saponify fatty acids from a triglyceride (a plant-based oil), you get the saponified oil (soap) and glycerin.

The Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel reviewed glycerin in 2019 (Safety Assessment of Glycerin as Used in Cosmetics). They found it safe for use in cosmetics (and, therefore, also in soap).

Other Ingredients

The safety assessment covers the fixed oils saponified into your soap and the resultant glycerin. It doesn't include any essential oils that may come from the same plant. For example, the safety assessment covers lime seed oil, but lime essential oil is different and has other safety considerations.

You'll also need safety information covering any other additives, colors, or fragrances you add to your soap. HSCG Ingredient Look-Up should have you covered.