Marseille soap

Marius Fabre Marseille soap in blocks of 600 g

Marseille soap or Savon de Marseille (French pronunciation: [savɔ̃ də maʁsɛj]) is a traditional hard soap made from vegetable oils that has been produced around Marseille, France, for about 600 years. The first documented soapmaker was recorded from the city in about 1370.[1] By 1688, Louis XIV introduced regulations in the Edict of Colbert limiting the use of the name Savon de Marseille to olive oil based soaps.[2] The law has since been amended to allow other vegetable oils to be used.

By 1913, production had reached 180,000 tons. Thus, in 1924, there were 122 soapmaking companies in the Marseille and Salon-de-Provence areas combined.[3] However as of 2023, there were only four remaining, all part of an association called Union des Professionnels du Savon de Marseille (UPSM).[4]

  1. ^ "Marseille Soap a brief History". frenchly.us. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
  2. ^ "Association des Fabricants de Savon de Marseille". Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
  3. ^ "L'histoire du Savon de Marseille". marius-fabre.com (in French). Retrieved 18 July 2023.
  4. ^ "UPSM – Union des Professionnels du Savon de Marseille" (in French). Retrieved 2023-03-02.