A mixture of fatty acids from animal tallow, used as a cleansing and emollient ingredient.
What it is
Tallow acid is the mixture of fatty acids obtained from tallow, the rendered fat of cattle or sheep. It consists mainly of oleic, palmitic and stearic acids. CosIng lists it as a cleansing, emollient, emulsifying, refatting, skin-conditioning and cleansing surfactant ingredient.
Where it is used
Found in a small number of products, such as soaps.
Limits of interpretation
The INCI list shows which ingredients are present, not how much of each. Above 1%, ingredients are listed in descending order of weight; below 1% the order is free.
As a material derived from animal fat, its composition can vary between batches.
Functions
- Cleansing
- Helping to keep the body surface clean.
- Skin conditioning – emollient
- Acting as lubricants on the skin surface providing the skin with a soft and smooth appearance.
- Surfactant – emulsifying
- Helping suspensions or dispersions of liquids in a second liquid by reducing the surface tension of the substances to be emulsified.
- Refatting
- Replenishing the lipids of the hair or of the top layers of the skin.
- Skin conditioning
- Maintaining the skin in good condition.
- Surfactant – cleansing
- Wetting body surfaces, emulsifying or solubilizing oils, and suspending soil (generally, such ingredients contribute to the foaming and lathering properties of cleansing products).
EU regulation
This ingredient is not listed in the annexes of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 in the CosIng data.