Go Green: Soy Candles

Go green with soy candles is the latest thing in a long history of candle making to make a huge impact. Environmentally and economically friendly, going green with soy candles offer many advantages offer other candles. Their existence promotes a resurgence in the love affair the world has always had with candles.

Soy candles are environmentally friendly

Recorded candle use dates well back to before the ancient Greeks and Romans. The use of tallow, sheep’s fat, and of plaited cord and even wood for the wick, is well recorded in the history of candle making. Candlewicks were even dipped in lead up until the 1970’s in the United States, when candle makers themselves issued a voluntary ban on its use. Even with the event of electricity, candles are still part of American life. They are a staple of emergency lighting (done with caution and protection), regularly used in many different kinds of religious ceremonies, and of course, where would we be without candle lit dinners? For creating an ambiance of warmth, intimacy, and romance there is still nothing like candle light.

The soybean industry is huge and crop values across the United States alone exceed $16 billion annually. The reason – any process used to make a soybean process uses 80-85% of the soybean itself. Very little of the actual product is wasted, making soybeans an economical crop to grow and, as a product, to produce. Soy candles are made of soy wax, which is hydrogenated soybean oil. Harvested soybeans are cleaned, cracked and de-hulled in a process producing soybean meal.

Soybean oil separated from soybean meal is yellowish in color. It is 58 percent polyunsaturated fat, 23 percent monounsaturated fat, and 15% saturated fat in content. One 60-pound bushel of soybeans will produce 11 pounds of the oil and as much as 48 pounds of soybean meal. Soybean oil, also known as soya oil, makes candles that burn cleaner. The oil is also used in many products from fuels to plastics.

Although there has been much debate regarding this, the industry seems to be moving in the direction that for a true soy candle to be called green, it must be made up of at least 85 percent of soybean oil. They may include natural or artificial fragrance, and other binders and fillers.

• Soy candles are less expensive then candles made of paraffin and beeswax.
• Soy candles take more time to burn, burning up to 50 percent longer than paraffin candles.
• Go Green: Soy candles are made from a renewable source. They are made of a crop grown in the United States, which benefits both the labor and consumer markets.
• Soy candles are natural, whereas paraffin is made from petroleum, which is an import for the United States.
• Soy candles produce less soot – that dark, ashy substance that coats walls, ceilings is a particulate matter made up of carbon and is dangerous to human lungs.
• Soy candles, in the manufacturing process, are quicker to pour. This reduces the possibility of an injury to any employee making the candle. They also stick easier to containers and produce candles of an even texture and consistency.

Soy candle making positively affects the manufacture of wicks – the braided, cotton core of the candle. It also affects the fragrance industry. Making and selling candles is also an entrepreneurial venture and is big business for thousands of independent contractors and sales persons across the United States.

Decorate tables with soy candles

While general candle safety is standard, it is wise to remember some things when burning soy candles.

• Soy Candles burn at a lower burning point, thus causing their fragrance to diffuse faster. Sometimes this can compete with the smell and flavor of food depending on the amount of fragrance used in making the particular candle. Scents may also affect allergy sufferers. Choose your candle scent and timing accordingly.
• Trimming of the candlewick may be necessary in some soy candles. While the use of braided cotton cord is usual (a braided cord burns back on itself), it is not a given in the soy candle making business. Wicks will need to be trimmed back to an eighth or one fourth of an inch when relighting candles for burning.
• Soy wax is easier to clean up than paraffin candle wax, but you must still protect your furniture, yourself, and your family from hot wax burns. Use your candle in a container meant specifically to hold candles.
• Never burn soy candles, or any kind of candles, without careful supervision. If you leave the room, even for a minute, the candle should be snuffed out properly.

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