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The Real Marseille Soap

Steeped in history and virtues, Marseille soap, a toilet companion for generations, champion of household chores, virtuoso of washhouses, has built a reputation around the world. The other side of the coin to the success it has always known, it is today the target of multiple counterfeits from abroad which usurp its name. Learning to recognize the real Marseille soap, distinguishing the authentic from the pale copy, interfering in its manufacturing secrets, such is the quest of our century-old soap factory which demystifies the universe of this legendary soap. Marseille soap is a cult product, a symbol of our heritage, witness to artisanal manufacturing methods that respect a centuries-old tradition. Enjoying a very attractive image that crosses borders, the cube with a southern accent often suffers in spite of itself from identity theft. Indeed, the reason for this state of affairs is simple and implacable: the name “Marseille soap” does not benefit from any legal protection. This denomination, guarantee of quality, is often used with abuse and it is now common to find soaps of all shapes, of all origins, of all qualities and of all provenances unduly stamped "Marseille soap". This can be misleading for the consumer who is looking for noble soap with impossible-to-counterfeit virtues. In order not to be fooled, we recommend that you inform yourself well at the time of purchase and correctly read the label mentioning its composition, place of origin and method of manufacture. An informed public remains one of the best weapons against counterfeiting.

DISCOVER SOME TIPS TO RECOGNIZE THE REAL SAVON DE MARSEILLE

1/ 100% of the oils that make up Marseille soap are vegetable.The oils can come from different plants (often the olive) but must be exclusively vegetable. So you will find on the list of ingredients "Sodium Olivate" (from olive oil), "Sodium Cocoate" or "Sodium Palmate" (from palm oil).Trick :If you read on the label of your soap “Sodium Lardate” (pork fat) or “Sodium Tallowate” (beef fat), it is not the real Marseille soap.

2/ It must be composed of at least 72% oil.Trick :You can inquire with the manufacturer and check that the mentions 72% or Extra Pure are well molded on one of its 6 faces. Real Marseille soap is also stamped with the name of the soap factory that makes it.

3/ It is made from oils, water, soda, and salt exclusively.Trick :Run away from labels with an expanding list! Marseille soap does not contain more than “6 ingredients” in its recipe. It must be guaranteed without perfume, without preservatives, without any synthetic adjuvant...

4/ Marseille soap never contains dye.Trick :An authentic Savon de Marseille is made from oils, which color it naturally. Savon de Marseille is green to brown in shade when it is made of olive oil, white to beige when it contains only palm oil and coconut oil.

5/ Its manufacturing process follows manufacturing techniques derived from ancestral know-how.This guarantee of authenticity guarantees that the soap is made in a cauldron according to the main traditional manufacturing steps.

DID YOU KNOW ?

The Bouches du Rhône region is the cradle of soap production. From the 12th century, the region, thanks to its important resources in olive oil and soda, had a multitude of soap factories. The real Savon de Marseille is therefore produced in this historic area. Today there are very few authentic manufacturers based in the Bouches du Rhône. Rampal Latour, who manufactures all his soaps in Salon de Provence is very proud to be part of it.

RAMPAL LATOUR: GENUINE MARSEILLE SOAP SINCE 1828

The Rampal Latour soap factory is the heir to a long tradition which has raised Salon de Provence to the head of French soap craftsmanship. Since 1828, the adventure of our soap factory has continued and confirms our commitment to perpetuating traditional know-how that satisfies fans of real Marseille soap. Marseille soap is much more than a soap. It is a pride of Provence. The passion for a job. A tribute to nature. A beneficial presence. Evidence that is transmitted. It's a lifestyle. And for us, pioneers in the art of making real Marseille soap, it is a reminder of the trust that our customers have shown us for 185 years.

At the Rampal Latour soap factory, tradition rhymes with innovation

Rampal Latour's secret? The taste for innovation, for the constant modernization of the production tool. All this of course, while making sure to maintain its quality and respecting tradition.

In the footsteps of Pierre Rampal, Marseille soap manufacturer in 1828

The Rampal Latour soap factory innovates and launches in 2014 the first real Marseille Extra Pure soap certified by Ecocert (COSMOS Natural), in 600g cube, 300g bar and 150g slab. Proud of this recognition, Rampal Latour, ardent defender of the real Marseille soap, Extra Pur, intends to continue its innovations by combining tradition and modernity. The passion for our profession of soap maker, the taste for a job well done and the determination to guarantee the best service to our customers, have always led us to go beyond the standards. We innovate, backed by our bicentennial experience and proud of our authentic know-how, which enables us to meet the highest quality requirements.

A TRADITIONAL CAULDRON MANUFACTURING FOR A GENUINE MARSEILLE SOAP

The stages of making Marseille soap are precise and demanding. Through his know-how, the Master Soapmaker guarantees its authenticity and ensures its quality right up to the packaging of the soap. With our local partners, we are committed to maintaining the tradition, and we guarantee that our Marseille soap is always made in a cauldron according to the method of the famous Marseille process.

The cauldron manufacturing steps of the Marseille process

Tradition obliges, exclusively vegetable oils are heated in the cauldron (olive, palm* and copra). Thanks to the addition of soda, the liquid oils turn into a thick mass. This is the stage ofMASHING: this is the beginning of the chemical process called saponification, which transforms oils into soap. Then comes the step ofRELEASEwhich makes it possible to carry out theCOOKINGwhich will complete the saponification. Then comes the stage ofWASHINGwith salt-laden water to remove excess soda, impurities and unsaponified fatty acids: the soap becomes Extra Pure. Finally, theLIQUIDATIONto give the soap its final texture: a smooth soap paste ready for DRYING.

At the artisanal Rampal Latour soap factory, we guarantee the quality of the extra pure paste of our Marseille soaps, made using this so-called “Marseillais” manufacturing process in a cauldron. We also work with high quality purified vegetable oils.

The art of DRYING authentic Marseille soap

Faithful to tradition, we particularly control our finishes: from the open-air drying of the raw soap paste on our old wooden canisses to obtain a soft and malleable paste, to the molding of our Marseille soaps thanks to our traditional machines from the 1960s. It is the manual work and the choice of the best moment to mold the soap that brings this irreplaceable human touch to our Marseille soaps.

MOLDING as a ''music of gestures''

Hardened by time, the canisses on wheels heavy with almost 300 cubes of 600g gross are approached by our molding machines. Our craftsmen carefully seize each raw block of Marseille soap to push them – one by one – towards the brass mold which will engrave them between six stamp plates, another guarantee of an authentic Extra Pure Marseille soap.

Old fashioned series

For our limited series, we take up the hammer and stamp with the collection of our boxwood stamps dating from the 19th century, a unique and historical collection of the soap factory.

PACKAGING

A final quality control is carried out at the time of packaging, always done by hand. Carefully, in the old fashioned way, with this characteristic assurance of the experience of the hand of the craftsman who takes the time and guarantees the durability and unequaled quality of our Marseille soap.

FOR A GENUINELY MODERN SOAP

Rampal Latour Marseille soap is made exclusively from 100% vegetable oils: olive oil for the green Marseille soap associated with copra and palm oil and only 100% vegetable oils of copra and of palm for traditional white soap. Like all the products of our soap factory, the Extra Pure Marseille soap is produced in compliance with current hygiene and traceability standards. It is truly the natural soap par excellence. Hypoallergenic, it contains no dyes, preservatives or perfumes. “It is the purest and softest soap there is,” said René Rampal in 1940.

Marseille soap: unique virtues

Hypoallergenic, Marseille Extra Pur Rampal Latour soap bears our signature because it is simple, good and true. It is fascinating by its natural and multi-purpose nature, like a great traveler through time: effective, practical, economical and ecological, while being gentle and soothing, as many dermatologists attest. Rampal Latour Marseille soap is simply essential!

The real Marseille soap Rampal Latour