What’s So Great about Soy Wax?
Posted on July 8, 2010 by
Apparently it’s product review week here at The Greenists. So far, we’ve heard about body butter, bar soap, baby bottles, and hand wash. I’m sort of glad The Modern Gal threw an “h” in there with that last one, because that means it’s not me who spoils all that nice alliteration by telling you that today’s post is sponsored by the letter “c.” Friends, we’re going to talk about candles.
Learning to live a greener life involves just that: learning. I’ve been working on that basic Reduce, Reuse, Recycle mantra for years now, but I’m always coming across other tidbits of varying significance and concern that simply never occurred to me before. Take candles, for instance. Like lots of people, I burn candles at home now and then to fill the room with fragrance or simply enjoy the cozy glow. And sure, I knew candles are made of wax, but I never really stopped to think about where that wax comes from.
In most cases, it’s from paraffin, which is a petroleum product. As we all know, petroleum is a non-renewable resource. It also contains carcinogenic toxins, and burning it releases contaminants that pollute the air in your home and, on a large scale, contribute to global warming. Traditional paraffin candles also produce soot, which can blacken not only the inside of the glass that holds your candle, but your walls and furniture as well.
One good alternative to traditional paraffin candles is soy wax candles. Soy wax is made from soy beans, so it’s natural, nontoxic, and renewable. It burns cleanly, producing little soot and no known pollutants. Soy candles also burn longer than paraffin candles (up to 50% longer, by some accounts), and any wax that spills on furniture or clothing is much easier to clean up.
Much of this information was brought to my attention by the good people at M. Carlesimo, who sent me a few samples of their products to review. Their 100% soy wax candles use organic cotton wicks that are lead and zinc free, and the candles are housed in frosted white recycled glass and shipped in recycled paper packaging printed with soy-based ink.
I got to try votive-sized versions of the white sangria, mandarin, and ginger white tea fragrances, and all smelled downright delicious. They also burned evenly and lasted hours and hours… far longer than any regular votives I’ve ever burned.
If I’m being totally honest, the eight-ounce candles for sale on M. Carlesimo’s web site are a little spendy for a [trying to be] budget-conscious girl like me, but they are hand-poured from quality, sustainable ingredients, and their estimated burn time is a whopping 55 hours. Also, they are apparently embraced by celebrities such as Melora Hardin (whose role as the candle-making Jan Levinson on The Office apparently does not preclude her from enjoying M. Carlesimo’s wares) and Neil Patrick Harris. (If it’s good enough for Barney Stinson, surely it’s good enough for me!)
All star-struck kidding aside, I think I’m a convert to soy wax. I’ll be on the lookout for healthier, more environmentally friendly candles from now on, and I hope you will be, too!
Ha. Glad I could help out
You’re right about it being a learning process. I knew soy was supposed to be better, but I didn’t quite make the parafin=petroleum connection, and since I’m trying to do everything I can to cut back on petroleum products now (take that, BP!), I have twice the reason to stick to soy candles.
My question is: if it’s made from GMO non-organic soy, are you releasing chemicals/pesticides into the air when you burn it? I know around here they use sewer sludge on soybean fields (class B sludge, which can contain heavy metals and other contaminates so I’d be worried about these being in the wax and being released while burning).
I’d hesitate to fully buy into soy was because, you’re still buying a product that’s causing environmental damage because of the way it’s grown (unless of course they’re made with organic soy). Most of the soy grown in this country is GMO and is sprayed with Roundup, so it’s still a petroleum heavy product. I’d have to do a little more reseach before jumping on the soy wax wagon, particularly a little more looking into whether soy wax was a bybroduct that wasn’t being used so they decided selling it as candles would be a great way to get rid of it – just like HFCS was a while ago.
I personally like to stick with products that require the least amount of processing, and for me that’s beeswax candles. I get the wax from my hive that’s 100% organic (no chemicals used at all, only essential oils).
You make a good point, Chiot’s Run. I have to admit I don’t know whether this particular company uses organic soy, but that is definitely something to look for and consider. And you’re right about beeswax. In a good/better/best scheme, beeswax would typically rate higher in terms of using fewer chemicals and releasing less nasty stuff into the air. But I also read that in many cases (your own beeswax candles excluded, of course) beeswax candles use a blend of beeswax and paraffin. And pure beeswax candles are typically much more expensive than either paraffin or soy.
I think it’s safe to say that, bottom line, both soy wax and beeswax are better than paraffin, but you’re right that the specific ingredients and processing matter as well.
(This is way more complicated than when I just picked the nicest-smelling candles at a Party-Lite party!)
I always love your posts, Stefanie. You’re always so thorough.
I’ve been using soy candles for a while now, but thanks to Chiot’s Run’s comment, I’ll be sure to look for organic soy from now on. It hadn’t occurred to me before — I was just happy not to be using a paraffin candle.
For all you people out there with feathered friends (Birds I mean) soy based or bee’s wax candles are the ONLY kind of candles that you can safely use around these creatures. Birds have very sensitive respiratory systems (anyone heard of a canary in a coal mine?) and the pollutants from other kinds of candles can cause them to get very sick or even cause death! So not only are you making a good choice for the environment you could also be making a very good choice for the health of your pets (not to mention yourself!).
Bees wax candles for me… But thanks for writing about an alternative. Bee’s wax may be getting harder to come by in the near future
Soy wax is definitely much safer than burning crude oil into our lung, indoors and vents.
Mostly, soy beans used for soy wax do not require a bunch of pesticides for growing, because they are not being turned into food, but even when used for crop protection, the amount released by burning its vegetable oil wax is not even closely compared to the damage of crude petroleum. There are many organic options, as the M.Carlesimo showed here, and there are also soy blends from cheaper brands which still blend in some paraffin into it, but what really maters for candle lovers like me is that pure soy wax offers a better quality candle, that burns clean, supports our local economy and boycotts oil giants and environmental disasters such as the recent one we’ve seen showing up in our shores. Just look at those tar balls and imagine accumulating them in your lungs. I’ll pay the extra price for the Soy alternative anytime.
[...] talk about green cleaning? That’s OK; I nearly forgot, too. Sorry, folks, but I’ve had soy candles to tell you about! And book release-related local drinking to do! I’ll get back to the green cleaning tips [...]
Great article. Just wanted to add that in December 2009 a University of South Carolina research study showed paraffin was toxic while soy candles, whether organic soy or not I can’t recall, were found to be TOXIC-FREE!
Also noted your search for budget-friendly soy candles and wanted to introduce you to my website, countrylifecandle.com. My 16oz candles (10% more than leading brands costing the same) are $21.95 with free shipping and all proceeds benefit animal rescue and long-term care.
Thanks for your time!
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Interesting but I’m not a fan of soy wax candles. They have a small flame that isn’t very exciting. I don’t like the idea that so much soy is GMO and soy is causing problems all over in third world countries from deforestation for biofuels. It has too much iffy karma attached to it. Give me old fashioned beeswax.