Is Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate natural? NOI 0.83

Q: Is Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate natural?

Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate has a Natural Origin Index (NOI) of 0.83 (scale 0–1) per ISO 16128. Coconut fatty acid provides the acyl chain; the N-methyltaurine backbone is built from ethylene-oxide-derived taurine plus a synthetic methyl group. An NOI of 0.83 means 83% of its molecular mass is traceable to a natural, renewable source.

How we scored it

Cocoyl (coconut fatty acid, natural) ~183 Da + SO3Na (mineral sulfonate, natural) 103 = 286; N-CH3 + ethylene bridge (taurine backbone, petrochemical) 57 -> 286/343 = 0.83

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.

How it’s made

Schotten–Baumann acylation of N-methyltaurate by lauroyl chloride. Each curved arrow moves one electron pair, and the film ends on the score above.

Where it comes from

The fatty portion comes from coconut oil fatty acids condensed onto N-methyltaurine. N-methyltaurine itself is manufactured from petrochemical ethylene oxide and methylamine, so part of the molecule is synthetic.

In plain English

A mild, coconut-derived cleansing agent used in shampoos and body washes to create gentle foam. The fatty part comes from coconut oil; the taurine portion it's attached to is made synthetically.

CosIng definition: Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate is the sodium salt of the coconut fatty acid amide of N-methyltaurine. It conforms generally to the formula

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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.
2SODIUM METHYL COCOYL TAURATE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
3SODIUM METHYL COCOYL TAURATE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=SODIUM%20METHYL%20COCOYL%20TAURATE