Inlet Soap Company
Inlet Soap Company
Behind The Bubbles:
The Inlet Soap Co. Blog
The Sustainability of Bar Soap
The environmental impact of plastic waste is one of the most pressing challenges of our time. Globally, an estimated 300 million tons of plastic are produced annually, much of which ends up in landfills, oceans, and ecosystems. In this context, adopting more sustainable habits, such as using bar soap instead of liquid soap, presents a simple yet impactful way to reduce plastic waste. Bar soap offers significant environmental benefits, including minimal packaging, reduced carbon emissions, and a smaller ecological footprint.
Understanding Lye: Its Role in Soap Making
Lye, or sodium hydroxide (NaOH), is a crucial ingredient in traditional soap making, yet it is often misunderstood. Despite its strong, caustic properties, lye is not only necessary for soap production, but it also plays a transformative role in the process that turns fats and oils into soap. Soap simply cannot be made without lye, and products that claim to be “lye-free” are typically not true soap in the traditional sense. In this essay, we will explore what lye is, why it is needed for soap making, and why soap made without lye does not qualify as authentic soap.