What’s All This Argan Oil Stuff, Anyway?

This blog was originally written two years ago, and the events described happened then. It's still relevant, so we’ll publish now!

On our first trip to Morocco, I remember seeing Argan Women’s Cooperatives in many of the towns we passed through. I was only vaguely aware of Argan oil – something to do with cosmetics, I believe – and didn’t pay much attention. On our recent drive through the countryside in the hired car that Diane arranged (see an earlier post, Essaouria, here) we visited one of these women’s cooperatives, and stopped to watch goats climb argan trees to eat the leaves. So I learned a bit about the oil, and how it’s made.

Argan trees in the wild.

Argan oil has long been used in traditional Moroccan cooking, and in the last decade or so it has become exceedingly popular as a cosmetic oil. It is extracted from a nut that grows on the argan tree (Argania spinose), only found in southwestern Morocco; which is to say between Essaouira and Marrakesh. (Which is to say, rare!) On our three-hour bus ride here from Marrakesh I noted that every town we passed had a Women’s Argan Cooperative; the production of the oil and its related products has become an important cottage industry in this area, giving women a source of income and a certain independence.

Goats on the ground.

 Since cracking the nut to get at the oil-rich meat has not been successfully mechanized, argan oil production is done the same way it has since the beginning: women collect the fruit from the tree and dry them, pull off the pulpy fruit, crack the nut between stones, and grind the nut meats in stone grinders, releasing a thick oily paste. (The nut is often roasted to provide a… er, nutlike flavor to the edible oils.) The pulpy part becomes animal feed, the cracked shells are burned for fuel, and the paste is kneaded to release the oil.

Women at an Argan Coop shelling the nuts.

There is any number of shops in the medina here with women in traditional clothing sitting and grinding the nutmeats, or cracking the shells (although the grinding is more picturesque and pulls in more customers!). Our visit to the cooperative on our drive allowed us to see the process up close, and take photos. I also collected some nuts from the surrounding trees.

Demonstration of argan oil production in the Essaouria median.

Of course, we had the opportunity to try out, and to purchase, a variety of argan products, including argan honey (from the flowers, presumably), amlou, and the oil itself, both in edible and cosmetic varieties. We ended up buying a jar of amlou, the oil-bearing paste. It has the look and texture of almond butter, with a very similar flavor. (Too bad it was so expensive, about $10USD a pound!).

Grinding nuts at the Coop.

A Berber woman grinds argan nuts. She was quite lovely!

The trees apparently grow wild. Many are being planted, due to the popularity of the oil (and the trees withstand drought and very high temperatures, so are a good hedge against desertification), but they do not appear to be tended. Goats like the leaves, and really do climb up into the trees to eat them. Once upon a time the goat droppings were collected for the nuts they contained; the pulpy fruit gets digested, while the hard nut passes through untouched. But it seems there are just not enough goats eating berries to keep up with the increasing demand, so now the fruit are hand harvested directly from the tree.

Yes, goats in the trees!

While we were stopped on the side of the road watching the tree-climbing goats (and warily eyeing the shepherd dog, who took the security of his goats seriously), the driver explained that there is a good market for goat meat. It is, after all, a traditional food in this part of the world, and since these goats eat wild argan leaves exclusively, the meat is certified organic. And, a thing I did not know (yet another!): goat meat is approved for diabetics (it’s low in saturated fats). Apparently diabetics should not eat cow or sheep meat (also traditional foods), or pork (not that you can find any in Muslim countries). And, diabetes is a serious problem in Morocco. (Ever taste traditional Moroccan mint tea? More sugar than a candy bar! One change we’ve seen since we were last here a few years back is that the mint tea is now unsweetened, and served with do-it-yourself sugar.)

Argan oil production sounds like a win-win-win all around!

In the intervening two years since this visit, I’ve been using the cosmetic oil that we bought. Every time I'm done shaving (not every day—I let myself get a bit fuzzy) I apply the oil to my face. I find it soothing and not the least bit irritating: I use it around my eyes and have never had a problem with irritation. Even at the end of the day I can still feel the smoothing effect! We’ll be buying more before we leave…