Cacao butter vs cocoa butter?
We're sure you've heard of cacao butter - it's everywhere. Sold as a superfood, a moisturiser and a hair treatment. According to everyone selling it - it's the best thing since sliced bread. One small thing though…have you ever heard of cocoa butter?
Doesn't sound half as exotic does it? But it’s exactly the same! The only difference is that cacao butter is more expensive, for no reason. We don't believe in snazzy marketing to fool you into paying extra for exactly the same stuff. That seems like lying to us. Take a look at our cocoa butter, and you will never pay extra again.
Is there a Difference Between Cacao Butter and Cocoa Butter?
Nope, they are the same product, made the same way. They are the fat that comes from cocoa beans. The beans are taken from the larger cacao plant before being warmed and pressed to extract all the gorgeous fats.
What is Refined & Unrefined Cocoa Butter?
Refined cocoa butter has been extracted by solvents or an expeller to leave a decolourised and deodorised cocoa butter - it will be a white colour with no scent.
We only stock unrefined cocoa butter as it hasn’t been chemically processed , the cocoa butter has only been extracted by pressing the cocoa beans. It is also food grade.
One of our types of unrefined cocoa butter is organic, and this cocoa butter isn't deodorised so it has a strong chocolate scent.
Our other type of cocoa butter isn't organic and has been deodourised so it has a very neutral scent.
Which one you prefer comes down to whether you prefer organic products, and if you are looking for cocoa butter with it's natural scent.
Why Use Cocoa Butter?
For thousands of years cocoa butter has been prized for its wonderful skin benefits as well as for creating our favourite - chocolate! The Aztecs and Mayans even used cocoa beans for currency as they were so highly valued.
Cocoa butter is full of fatty acids which hydrate and nourish the skin. The butter forms a protective barrier over the skin to lock in moisture which is perfect for reducing stretch marks, scarring and wrinkles.
Because of its lovely chocolate scent, It is commonly used as a moisturiser, especially after a bath or shower.
How To Store Cacao or Cocoa Butter
Cocoa butter has a long shelf life when you store it correctly - simply keep it in a cool dark place like a cupboard or pantry. It’s solid at room temperature but will melt if exposed to heat.
How To Use Cocoa Butter
Cocoa butter is so versatile. You can use it straight out of the pack, just warm it between your hands and rub it on your skin to moisturise, protect and heal.
It also forms the basis of so many gorgeous skin and hair care recipes - try some of these:
- Dry skin causing you grief? Try making our Cocoa Lotion Bar.
- Want to learn how to make lip balm? Try our vegan lip balm recipe
- Interested in soap making? Try our lavender soap recipe
