Unexpected graining in kokum butter/cocoa butter

[SomethingGoodAustin]

Hi there;

I've been posting on the Cold Process soap forum for a while, but thought I would branch out a bit.

I make an all-purpose body and lip balm for chapped skin with aloe butter (which I believe is infused coconut oil), cocoa butter, comfrey-infused olive oil, beeswax, aloe extract, and lanolin. In a second batch, I subbed kokum butter for the cocoa butter, having read that it has greater "regenerative properties" (not sure exactly how dependable that claim is, mind you, but OK).

So now I have two small batches, one made with cocoa and the other made with kokum. I cooled them in my fridge after heating and blending and adding essential oils. At the time I made them, both batches had good texture, nice and smooth, and absorbed well into the skin. That lasted several weeks. It was winter (I live in Texas, by the way) so I stored them on a shelf in my garage to make room for other items. There was a warm snap--I think we had temps of about 70-80. Not long after that, I moved the balms back inside. Opened one--boom, really bad graining. And not just that, but less effective absorption. The other was still nice and smooth.

I assume that at some point during our warm snap, the balms melted at least partially and recooled slowly, thus causing the graining (My suspicion is that the kokum butter is the one that went grainy, but that may just be wishful thinking on my part, since kokum is more expensive than cocoa butter). But this makes me worry about future sales--after all, I can't control what happens during shipping. If the butter was this sensitive to a relatively minor fluctuation in temperature, then I can see some very annoyed customers in my future.

Susan over at Point of Interest says that all butters will become grainy if subjected to temp fluctuations: http://swiftcraftymonkey.blogspot.com/2010/01/e-mail-question-grainy-products-when.html Has anyone else had seemingly spontaneous graining several weeks after production? Also I know some people use the heat and hold method for prevent graining while other depend on quick cooling, and still others use both. Which method is most effective?

Thanks for the help, as always!

 

[lsg]

I think it is better to let the butters set at room temp and then whip them when they soften up at room temp. If you have a hard butter that will not soften enough, heat the other oils and melt the hard butter in those oils.

 

[judymoody]

There is a product called Butter EEZ which is supposed to inhibit grain formation. I have never used it but have seen it praised by formulators on another forum. I believe you can get it from lotioncrafter or maybe WSP.

I've also read that you can also prevent grain formation if you completely melt your oils and then chill them rapidly in the freezer to prevent crystal formation. Again, this is second hand, I've never attempted this.