Tallow has been used to make soap for centuries.  The Kreiner family uses its soap recipes to create natural skin products for you.  Naturally nourishing to the skin, tallow in a soap recipe will add moisture to your skin.

Long before synthetic detergents and laboratory-made emulsifiers, there was tallow—rendered animal fat, often from beef or mutton, prized for its dense, skin-loving properties. Traditionally sourced from suet around the kidneys and loins, tallow transforms what would otherwise be waste into one of the most dependable soap bases available. Once carefully rendered and purified, the fat makes its way into the soap pot. 

Kreiner Natural Soaps' combining hot and cold process soapmaking hastens saponification.  The pure ingredient of tallow joins with a strong alkali and produces soap bars that give a rich, creamy lather and exceptional hardness. 

The Superior Biodegradability of Tallow Soap

What Happens When Tallow Soap Enters the Environment?

When pure tallow soap reaches soil or water, microbes begin breaking it down almost immediately. Composed of animal fats and saponified oils, it integrates seamlessly into the ecological cycle. The soap’s fatty acids serve as food for bacteria and fungi, which metabolize them into water, carbon dioxide, and biomass. This rapid microbial digestion eliminates residue without polluting ecosystems.

Typical laboratory assessments of biodegradability rate soaps based on their readiness to decompose under aerobic conditions. Tallow soap consistently meets OECD 301 guidelines, often reaching the “readily biodegradable” category by degrading over 60% within 28 days. In contrast, many synthetic surfactants found in conventional body washes and dish soaps linger far longer before breaking down—some, like sodium laureth sulfate, can take over 90 days in aquatic environments.

Natural Tallow vs. Synthetics: Who Leaves a Lighter Trace?

Compare one bar of pure tallow soap with a conventional bar formulated with petroleum-based ingredients. While the former returns to the earth as water-soluble fatty acids and glycerin, the latter may leave behind residues like EDTA, triclosan, and microplastics. Studies from organizations such as the Environmental Working Group and the United Nations Environment Programme have identified these compounds as persistent pollutants in freshwater systems.

• Tallow soap: Breaks down in both soil and water environments without generating harmful byproducts.
• Petroleum-based soaps: Often contain synthetic stabilizers and fragrances that resist decomposition and disrupt aquatic ecosystems.

Think about the downstream effects. Every time lather is washed down the drain, it joins a complex system of waste treatment and environmental dispersal. Choosing a formulation that decomposes fully doesn’t just reduce contamination—it eliminates it.

This isn't just anecdotal. A 2020 study published in Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy found that soaps made with naturally derived fats reduced chemical oxygen demand (COD) in wastewater by over 75% compared to synthetic blends. That directly impacts the health of rivers, wetlands, and marine habitats.

Pure tallow soap doesn’t introduce new chemical burdens into the environment. It cycles back into nature, contributing nothing that shouldn't have been there in the first place. Ready to rethink your drain-to-stream footprint?