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Phasing out tallow shaving soaps in the EU?

Basically as a manufacturer you just need to make sure that you are adhering to all restrictions as to banned/regulated substances.
This is a part of the added costs that I mentioned. Adhering to any restrictions is time and money. They just choose not to add the spend to their cost of goods.

Cheers!
 
A few weeks back I researched the requirements to make and sell soap in the EU, for a completely unrelated question.
Basically my amateur finding was that there are no required certifications or tests.
Basically as a manufacturer you just need to make sure that you are adhering to all restrictions as to banned/regulated substances. And the latter do not include tallow from animals cleared for food processing.
That's pretty much it.
If you have different information, please do enlighten us.
That’s basically it. Before it was just a cheap industrial byproduct of slaughtering now it has to be food grade.
 
People of the EU and certain other countries are luck to have such caring regulators to protect them from skin allergies. I commend them for their vigorous pursuit in determining such harmful substances.

Although rare, aquagenic urticaria is also a concern they need to act on. We are just waiting.

Where will the regulators draw the line?
Well every country has its own silliness nowadays.

Pray tell how much safer you feel now after Australia banned knife and gun carry, vaping and branded cigarette packaging…. :rolleyes1
 
That’s basically it. Before it was just a cheap industrial byproduct of slaughtering now it has to be food grade.

If the animal is cleared by a vet to go into slaughtering, it means it was deemed healthy and safe for food processing. Thus the scraps are obviously safe for soap production too.
I'm not aware of any recent changes in this regard.
If you have any different information, it would be awesome if you would share it.
 
If the animal is cleared by a vet to go into slaughtering, it means it was deemed healthy and safe for food processing. Thus the scraps are obviously safe for soap production too.
I'm not aware of any recent changes in this regard.
If you have any different information, it would be awesome if you would share it.
Unfortunately in German but the EU reference numbers are there...

Here it states that due to BSE many byproducts are now seen as hazardous waste and are not used furthermore or only in vastly reduced form by the industry.

So for instance a Vet cleared animal will be slaughtered and the muscle meat will go into further processing. Bones, white slime, pink slime, cartilage, nervous tissue and such can't be further processed to livestock feed anymore. Alternative usages are for instance fermentation material for Biogas or it simple has to be burned.

edit:
And i found something in English...

Soap grade tallow is usually unrefined but according to the paper below tallow has now to be a) from cattle fit for consumption and b) refined.

 
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Unfortunately in German but the EU reference numbers are there...

Here it states that due to BSE many byproducts are now seen as hazardous waste and are not used furthermore or only in vastly reduced form by the industry.

So for instance a Vet cleared animal will be slaughtered and the muscle meat will go into further processing. Bones, white slime, pink slime, cartilage, nervous tissue and such can't be further processed to livestock feed anymore. Alternative usages are for instance fermentation material for Biogas or it simple has to be burned.

edit:
And i found something in English...

Soap grade tallow is usually unrefined but according to the paper below tallow has now to be a) from cattle fit for consumption and b) refined.

Well stated!
 
I went vegan a few years ago. The post shave from tallow based soaps left my face feeling greasy.
I like the concept of using all parts of the animals we are consuming but for me it was a matter of face feel.
 
Unfortunately in German but the EU reference numbers are there...

You do realize that the BSE wave in Europe and the resulting (important and useful) changes in regulations were made more than 20 years ago?

Nothing much has changed since then, certainly not in the past few years.
Tallow is still fairly cheap and if it's safe to eat, it's safe to put into soap.
The reason many manufacturers are switching to vegan must have different reasons, don't blame this on the EU.
 

Rudy Vey

Shaving baby skin and turkey necks
I think this trend to go animal fat free started a few years back in the UK. All the famous English soap makers (Pen's, Trumper, T&H etc) have gone this route. In most cases not for the best, but I have only experiences with Pen's and Trumper's tallow free soaps - the tallow versions were much better. After the English companies started this, a lot of the rest European house followed.
Personally, I do like tallow based soaps, but also have several tallow-free ones. There are a few makers in the US that make great soaps. MWF for me is no loss, I never liked it, but this is just my personal opinion.
 
I assume that animals are not being slaughtered for their tallow but rather that the tallow is a byproduct of the meat industry. Is this is correct? If so.....where is the tallow not being used in soap production now going?
 
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You do realize that the BSE wave in Europe and the resulting (important and useful) changes in regulations were made more than 20 years ago?

Nothing much has changed since then, certainly not in the past few years.
Tallow is still fairly cheap and if it's safe to eat, it's safe to put into soap.
The reason many manufacturers are switching to vegan must have different reasons, don't blame this on the EU.
I'm not blaming the EU nor do I insist that this is the only reason but you asked about tallow. Nonetheless cost of raw materials is the most important factor for mass market, low margin/tech products.

Artisans can easily justify the higher costs of tallow when they use even more exotic (expensive) fats/oils for their products. For big players like Henkel or Unilever it might just be a combination of declining sales and eroding margins. What was the reason for the demise of Williams in the US?

In addition in 2020 Dreiring Soap Works/Germany, that did amongst others tallow Tabac and Fine, went belly up so certain production capabilities are simple lost or have changed. And there IS naturally also an increasing trend in regards to vegan/cruelty free products that is especially strong in the cosmetics industry.
 
I assume that animals are not being slaughtered for their tallow but rather that the tallow is a byproduct of the meat industry. Is this is correct? If so.....where is the tallow not being used in soap production now going?
Animal feeds, biofuels, lubricants, cold rolled steel production, industrial chemicals...

The supply is relatively inelastic--completely dependent on animal production which is driven by the food industry. Demand is driven by a lot of things, including the relative price of palm products. And, there are various grades of tallow for industrial use (not always separated by animal source). Best numbers I can glean from the USDA and industry publications is that about a quarter of total US tallow production is edible grade, and I believe that includes for use in petfoods and other animal feedstocks.

Biofuels are creating a significant demand pressure because while they typically use the lowest grade of fats, that puts pressure on other industrial users who can't necessarily just switch to palm or other vegetable fats like the cosmetics industry can.

Short version: it's complicated. And it's not about "going vegan" even if the cosmetics industry markets it that way.
 
...What was the reason for the demise of Williams in the US?...
About four or five reformulations, each worse than the last. If they had gone backwards about four or five reformulations and upped the price by a buck it would still be around, and it would be a popular choice for many wet shavers.

When the generation that used it, (because that's what they'd been using their whole lives), died, so did the soap sales.

There was no good reason for it disappearing except that it sucked. It had amazing market penetration, even during the wet shaving resurgence. You could buy it in almost every drugstore and market. Williams has no one but Williams to blame for their own failure.
 

Marco

B&B's Man in Italy
I have many wet shaving friends from all over Europe (Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, the UK and Ireland) and the vast majority of them really do not care about the removal of tallow from shaving soaps. Nowadays there are so many OUTSTANDING tallow-free soaps whose performance is at a such high level that tallow is no longer a priority for them. I agree 100%.
 
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