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Our love for Marseille soap!
Marseille soap… This incredible ally for our skin, household chores, laundry and much more. We are so in love with it that we named our online store after it. Today, we would like to share with you all the richness of authentic Marseille soap. There are so many possible uses and sometimes overlooked virtues, it really is the most versatile soap to date. If you are running out of ideas for uses, we invite you to look at ourrecipes and tips!
One of the famous characteristics of Marseille soap is that it can be used both as a body soap and also as a detergent for washing clothes or dishes.
In Europe, it is also the favorite of campers and hikers since they only need one soap to take a shower, do the laundry and clean the pots. Add to this a lifespan far superior to all other soaps and its biodegradable nature; this is very practical! Thanks to its healing properties, it can also help if you have small wounds or even insect bites.
The little story
For more than 3000 years, Aleppo soap (Syria) has been made from generation to generation by master soap makers, after the olive harvest in November. Made from olive oil and bay laurel oil (Laurus Nobilis fruit pulp), it is the ancestor of Marseille soaps. He is the international star of his time. Until the 16th century, Marseille soap factories only imitated what was done elsewhere. However, the techniques of supplying raw materials are improving while the supremacy of Genoa, which until now has manufactured the most famous soaps, is collapsing under the weight of embezzlement. The soap made in Marseille thus gains in quality, popularity and internationalization.
The authentic
There are products so called Marseille soap on the market but which in fact have nothing in common with the real Marseille soap. So how can you be sure you are dealing with an authentic product?
Initially composed of 72% olive oil and without added perfume, this authentic bar is used for body care, especially for sensitive skin. There is also Marseille soap in the “household” version, with percentages and oils that differ from the original version. Real Marseille soap must correspond to the approved manufacturing process, which limits the addition of synthetic additives.
There are a few large Marseille soap factories that make real Marseille soap in the purest tradition. They have come together to form the union of Marseille soap professionals (UPSM).