Castile Soap is a term used in English-speaking countries for olive oil based soap made in a similar style to the soap which originated in the Castile region in Spain.
The history of this type of soap making goes back to the Levante, where soap-makers in Aleppo produced an Olive Oil and Laurel Oil based soap for millennia. The term Aleppo Soap is still used in many countries as a name for Olive Oil soaps.
In the 11th century the Crusaders brought the Aleppo Soap back to Europe. Soap production started in Spain (Castile), in Italy, where there was plenty of Olive Oil available. Laurel Oil was expensive and in short-supply, the soap-makers in Southern Europe therefore dropped the use of Laurel Oil in their formulation creating an Olive Oil Soap, now known in English speaking countries as Castile Soap.
In the Northern part of Europe Olive was hard to come by at reasonable costs. The soap-makers therefore used animal fat or tallow in their soap production. Olive oil was only available to the rich and wealthy. It was far too expensive for the man in the street.
The French King, Louis the 14th also wanted to generate revenue from the expensive commodity and ordered soap-makers from Marseille to manufacture Olive Oil Soap. The called it “Sapon de Marseille”, a term used also in Germany for Olive Oil Soap.
In the “Old Days” the name Castile Soap was only used for 100 % pure Olive Oil Soap. Some producers in particular in Spain still stick to that rule.
In the U.S. the term Castile Soap is often used for pure vegetable oil soap, which means they do not contain any animal fats. Since their customer still expect a fair bit of foam and to keep their costs down, the most important oil for them is often Coconut Oil.

What Makes Castile Soap ideal for the Skin?
Olive oil is what makes natural Castile soap ideal for the skin. It is. In fact, some purists would say that in order for a soap to be considered a true Castile soap, it should only be made from 100% olive oil.
Olive oil is the ingredient that gives the soap its mildness and gentleness. If you look at history, ancient Egyptians would use pure olive oil to cleanse their skin from impurities. For centuries, olive oil was used to make soap due to its mild cleansing properties. It also helps the skin to maintain its elasticity and retain moisture.

Benefits of Using Castile Soap
Free of synthetic fragrances and preservatives, pure castile soap is gentle enough for even the most sensitive skin. The natural soap making process, otherwise known as saponification, would produce glycerine, which is a natural moisturizer. However, large companies would often filter glycerine out and use it to make lotions and other moisturizers. On the other hand, using Castile soap entitles your skin to the benefits of glycerine, moisturizing your skin naturally.
If all of these great reasons aren’t enough, Castile soap also offers environmental benefits. It is completely biodegradable and lacks the harsh chemicals that may pollute our groundwater.
Be Happy Castile Soaps
We have produced Castile Soap for more than 10 years. Initially we manufactured only soap bars but soon also liquid Castile Soaps, which at the time was not done in South Africa. Liquid Castile Soaps were very popular in the US, where they were, however and still are using Coconut Oil as the main ingredient. Unfortunately the US type of Castile Soap in particular from one major Supplier has in the meantime become as misleading synonym for the term Castile Soap. We decided right from the start to take the truly traditional route, our most important oil would be and still is cold pressed virgin Olive Oil. We use Coconut Oil for foam and in the case of soap bars also for hardness but rather tried various other soft oils like Apricot Kernel Oil, Macadamia Nut Oil, Avocado Oil and Sweet Almond Oil just to name a few. The result were liquid soaps and soap bars which were uniquely mild, moisturizing and caring for skin and hair. We are very proud that we pioneered the use of Castile Soap in South Africa, although one must state that today some companies offer “Castile Soaps” that do not deserve the name.