How we scored it
Unsaponifiable fraction of shea butter (triterpene alcohols and esters, sterols, tocopherols) is plant-derived with no added atoms; plant extract rule gives 1.0.
What counts. ISO 16128-2 scores the atoms that remain in the final ingredient. Reagents, solvents, catalysts and protecting groups used during manufacture leave no mass behind and are not counted.
Where it comes from
Dominant route concentrates the unsaponifiable fraction from refined shea butter (shea nuts, West Africa) by solvent extraction or distillation. No petrochemical alternative is known.
In plain English
The fraction of shea butter that does not turn to soap, rich in plant sterols, triterpene compounds and tocopherols. It conditions skin and hair. It is concentrated from shea butter, which comes from shea tree nuts.
CosIng definition: Butyrospermum Parkii Butter Unsaponifiables is the fraction of shea butter which is not saponified in the refining of shea butter fatty acids, Sapotaceae
References
- 1ISO 16128-1:2016 and ISO 16128-2:2017 — Guidelines on technical definitions and criteria for natural and organic cosmetic ingredients and products. ISO, Geneva.
- 2BUTYROSPERMUM PARKII BUTTER UNSAPONIFIABLES. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
- 3BUTYROSPERMUM PARKII BUTTER UNSAPONIFIABLES. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=BUTYROSPERMUM%20PARKII%20BUTTER%20UNSAPONIFIABLES