Olive oil in CP
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jcandleattic
Well-Known Member
I use the kind you get at either Sam's Club or Costco. I dont' think it's pomace, but it's also not EVOO. somewhere in the middle.
I have been wondering about the Costco OO. (BTW..does everyone know costco delivers? I have come across alot of people that don't know that). I have read in a couple different spots that pomace will accelerate your soap and I am starting to believe it because it is a struggle for me to keep anything liquid. ...it's starting to get frustrating. Plus I run out so fast that it would be so much quicker to get a costco delivery.
How do you like the costco OO? Does it seem to work well for you?
jcandleattic
Well-Known Member
My nephew works there so even if they didn't, I'd still get mine delivered to me.
I like it just fine. I don't think I've heard many complaints about their OO.
My nephew works there so even if they didn't, I'd still get mine delivered to me.
I like it just fine. I don't think I've heard many complaints about their OO.
Have you ever tried to use EV?
jcandleattic
Well-Known Member
I haven't, but many on here have. Maybe they have some advice about it.
I don't use EVOO, but I do use the Costco olive oil. No problems with it. Pomace accelerated for me and I quit using it early on. So there were probably some newbie factors involved in the acceleration as well. I'd have to order that though, and I can just pick up at Costco, so that's what I do.
I've used the Costco olive oil, but I think it was a mix of olive and extra virgin. It worked just fine, no issues.
I’ve been using Costco olive oil 2-3 liter bottles pack. for years with no issue. It’s a good price and no shipping.
I don’t have a costco near me but I buy from Wegmans and there is a “pure” olive oil and a Mediterranean blend for $15.99 and $16.99 and the EV is a little more for 101 fl oz
Mooicle, I use which ever OO I have available, depending on the recipe. For Castile soap, I prefer half pomace because it speeds trace, and that way I can get the soap into the mold sooner than if it was 100% regular OO. However, for soap I want to do intricate designs, I don't use pomace, for the same reason (speeds trace). I don't use EVOO because it is far more expensive here. Some folks are fortunate enough that EVOO is less expensive. If that were the case for me, I'd use it in soap.
Do you have a preference between the costco pure vs EVOO?
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If you color your soap, the ev makes it more difficult to get true colors because of how green it makes the batter. It’s been a long time since I used high amounts of oo in soap, but in terms of tracing or quality of finished product, I noticed absolutely no difference between the oils. (Unless I used an adulterated brand of oo, which are very common)
Zany_in_CO
Saponifier
Nope. There are options, but pomace is most well-suited to soap making due to the fact that it has the highest acidity and is usually the least expensive. The least well-suited to soapmaking is EVOO because it has the lowest acidity and is most expensive.
The best all-around Olive Oil is Costco/Kirkland Pure Olive Oil due to price and availability. If I'm out of pomace from Soapers Choice I can run up the street and pick up Pure OO from Costco.
The only area that requires caution is buying really cheap off-brand OO. It may be adulterated or "fake" olive oil and can throw your batch off. (Google "fake olive oil" for more information.) I lost 6 months of sales because my OO batches kept failing due to adulterated OO. Tom Lawson of Soapers Choice spotted the problem and offered to test my OO for me. I sent two 4-oz bottles to him. One from a local Natural Food Market; the other from a well-respected supplier here in CO. Both samples failed the test.
ETA: Here are a couple of links covering the subject of fake olive oil. Keep in mind that these tests are related to Olive Oil as food. There is little info on olive oil used in soap making unless the subject is addressed in threads like this one, or in blogs, soapers' web pages, etc.:
Fake Olive Oil - Brands 2019
https://deeprootsathome.com/italian-olive-oil-scam-see-olive-oil-brands-that-failed-the-tests/
https://www.realfoodforlife.com/which-olive-oil-to-buy-the-olive-oil-fraud/
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Thank you so much Zany. That helps a ton. I am thinking I will just be staying with pomace because it seems to be the cheapest anyway. I have been getting mine from WSP but they are out of stock quite a bit. That pure from Costco is pretty expensive. I am very nervous about fake oils also so I suppose it's best to stick with what has been working for me.Nope. There are options, but pomace is most well-suited to soap making due to the fact that it has the highest acidity and is usually the least expensive. The least well-suited to soapmaking is EVOO because it has the lowest acidity and is most expensive.
The best all-around Olive Oil is Costco/Kirkland Pure Olive Oil due to price and availability. If I'm out of pomace from Soapers Choice I can run up the street and pick up Pure OO from Costco.
The only area that requires caution is buying really cheap off-brand OO. It may be adulterated or "fake" olive oil and can throw your batch off. (Google "fake olive oil" for more information.) I lost 6 months of sales because my OO batches kept failing due to adulterated OO. Tom Lawson of Soapers Choice spotted the problem and offered to test my OO for me. I sent two 4-oz bottles to him. One from a local Natural Food Market; the other from a well-respected supplier here in CO. Both samples failed the test.
ETA: Here are a couple of links covering the subject of fake olive oil. Keep in mind that these tests are related to Olive Oil as food. There is little info on olive oil used in soap making unless the subject is addressed in threads like this one, or in blogs, soapers' web pages, etc.:
Fake Olive Oil - Brands 2019
https://deeprootsathome.com/italian-olive-oil-scam-see-olive-oil-brands-that-failed-the-tests/
https://www.realfoodforlife.com/which-olive-oil-to-buy-the-olive-oil-fraud/
I use the cheapest OO from my local grocery store on a regular basis and my soap turns out fine. The stock moves fast based on the expiration dates changing as I buy new oil. I am a COSTCO member, but it basically requires half a day for me to drive RT and shop there. I haven’t been once since the spring due to my work schedule.Thank you so much Zany. That helps a ton. I am thinking I will just be staying with pomace because it seems to be the cheapest anyway. I have been getting mine from WSP but they are out of stock quite a bit. That pure from Costco is pretty expensive. I am very nervous about fake oils also so I suppose it's best to stick with what has been working for me.
I believe it's the pure olive oil. It comes in a two pack of 3 liter bottles for about 25.99 at my Costco. I've been using it for 8 or so years now.
penelopejane
Well-Known Member
I only use EVOO because I want oil in my soap (and anything that goes on my skin) to be as chemically free as possible. This is my personal choice. Pomace is extracted from the remnants of olive oil processing through the use of solvents (as are some other oils). Some of those solvents remain in the oil and in the soap.
EVOO has label appeal in Australia.
EVOO does make a castile soap that has a bit of a green tinge but depending on the percentage you use in your soap you will probably not notice the difference. Both pure castile and other high OO soaps cure out to white so it is not a problem with colouring soap except possibly for the first few weeks.
In Australia EVOO is cheaper than in the US but regardless of price I would still use EVOO. In Australia it is illegal to sell Pomace as "Olive Oil" it has to be "olive pomace oil".
If you choose to use pomace, and that is entirely up to you, I hope you label it as such. The fact that I couldn't guarantee what was being put into handmade soap that I was buying was what started me making soap. If you are happy to put it in your soap be happy to put it on your label. I am sure there are a lot of people who do not mind but it is really nice for those of us who do mind to be able to trust soap makers.
I don't care for EVOO because of the tint - it makes it hard to have a nice predicable color. I use regular olive oil, not pomace, which I would not purchase because I don't want those solvents either.
