Marketing as vegan

[Robbiegirl]

While I will not be anywhere near ready to sell in a long time, I found this interesting. I am looking for coconut milk powder and found this. Technically if a soap has coconut milk powder in it, it should not be listed as vegan.

"COCONUT MILK POWDER
Coconut milk powder has a high-fat content, so it may produce a heavier result in baked goods. You can find coconut milk powder in many Asian markets. However, Beth Kevles of the website Eating Without Casein notes that every coconut milk powder she has encountered contains milk, casein or cream. Examine the labels carefully if you choose to seek out a vegan coconut milk powder."

 

[bluevervain]

I use coconut milk powder in bath melts. Our local Asian market sells three brands and they all are basically powdered cow's milk with coconut additives. They smell great and they feel silky and lovely but not vegan. Too bad because it is very cheap compared to canned coconut milk.

Coconut milk in a can, every brand I've ever seen, is vegan. But it's two bucks or so for a can vs. the 29 cents for the powdered stuff.

 

[Padamae]

I made coconut milk soap 2 weeks ago and I bought the stuff in the cold milk section instead of the canned. It was in a milk carton. My daughter drank what I didn't use she loved it. A nice treat for her.

 

[Fragola]

Yes, interesting, seems cow is a required ingredient.

I guess there's always the choice of going back to the coconut ...

 

[judymoody]

You can get canned coconut milk at Trader Joe for 99 cents. No animal-based additives.

The coconut milk that is in a carton in the dairy case at my local supermarket also is dairy-free but is thinned with water. I can't remember if it had added sugar or not.

I am participating in a lather additive swap right now (everybody made the same base recipe and then added specific additives so we could do side by side comparisons). The canned coconut milk didn't meaningfully affect the lather quantity or quality compared to the control bar. The bar made with powdered milk made significantly better lather - probably due to the cow milk protein it contains.

 

[Robbiegirl]

I want to make a vegan salt bar and wanted to use the powdered coconut milk for that purpose. I will use coconut milk but Irish lass suggested making up the fat amount after using some of the liquid as water to mix with the lye.. It's late. Sorry if I am not being clear.

 

[LauraHoosier]

What about adding shredded coconut to water in the blender and giving that a whirl? You do that with almonds and get almond milk so why not with coconut?

 

[Jamison]

If you want a vegan product, why don't you skip this ingredient? Almost all my soaps are vegan (mainly for marketing purposes).

The only one that's not is one I use a little honey and beeswax.