How we scored it
Where it comes from
This emulsifier starts from castor oil, which is hydrogenated and then reacted with 55 moles of petrochemical ethylene oxide. The long ethoxylate chain leaves most of the final mass synthetic.
In plain English
An emulsifying ingredient derived from castor bean oil, reacted with a large amount of a petroleum-based compound to make it water-soluble. Most of its final weight is the synthetic part.
CosIng definition: Castor oil (Ricinus communis), hydrogenated, ethoxylated (55 mol EO average molar ratio)
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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.
- 2PEG-55 HYDROGENATED CASTOR OIL. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
- 3PEG-55 HYDROGENATED CASTOR OIL. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=PEG-55%20HYDROGENATED%20CASTOR%20OIL