Expert: Terry Knorr - 12/28/2004

Question
i have been making lotions from goats milk jojoba oil sweet almond oil mineral vegetable glycerine coconut oil and emulsifying wax. recently i had some in a local shop to sell. the shop is closing for JAN. i picked my lotion up,to my dismay around the top of the container was green mold. can you tell me what happened? i went today to give sample to shops in gatlinburg tn.i was so pleased with my lotion i was ready to sell. please help... thank you carol

Answer
Hi Carol!

This question is really outside of my expertise, but I'll take a guess for you.  When using milk in soaps, it is best to use a preservative becasue the milk will spoil.  This might be the cause of the mold.  In soap, I use grapeseed extract as a preservative, though I would not even be able to  guess how much to use in lotions.

Perhaps another expert would be able to help you with this.  Or, you might want to try going on line and doing a search for Storey Publishing.  I'm sure that they have some books dealing with the subject of making lotions.  I have found their books to be excellent!

I'm sorry that I can't be more help to you.  Good Luck!

Terry