Whenever we’re at farmers markets, we almost always have customers who look at our soaps, stop, and then curiously ask, “…what’s the Pine Tar for?”
Almost all of our soaps contain some type of essential oil, so the Pine Tar soap is vastly different and, admittedly, not for everyone. Because pine tar comes from pine stumps that are slow burned in a kiln, not only is it a thick…well…tar, it has a VERY strong odor. Now, because it’s a natural product, the odor can change from time to time- there are times when it smells like strong barbeque or a wood stove, and there are other times when it can be super faint and smell almost like the tar that’s used on highways. Regardless of the smell, pine tar is a very effective ingredient.
Pine tar has been used medicinally for thousands of years due to its anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, and antipruritic properties. It’s used in soaps and shampoos to help relieve symptoms of different skin issues such as eczema, psoriasis, dandruff, poison ivy, and various forms of dermatitis (1 ). However, you don’t have to be suffering from a skin ailment to enjoy our Pine Tar soap- many people just absolutely love the odor and how well it cleans.
1. Barnes PhD, Tanya M. and Grieve PhD, Kerryn A., Topical pine tar: History, properties and use as a treatment for common skin conditions, 1/20/16, The Australian Journal of Dermatology, Abstract, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5434829/
