Many people don’t realise that harmful petrochemicals are used in the production of many everyday items including household cleaners, cosmetics, shampoos, conditioners, soaps and suncreams. These products all include surfactants, which work to decrease the surface tension between a liquid and another liquid, gas or solid. This allows the liquid to foam, disperse, wet or work as a detergent.

For years these surfactants have been created using petrochemicals which are harmful to the environment and release large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere during the manufacturing process. The air pollution this produces has a negative effect on our health as well, as it lowers the air quality, which can cause respiratory problems.

The good news is that Holiferm has found a way to manufacture surfactants without using petrochemicals making them more sustainable and environmentally friendly. Surfactants produced in this way are called biosurfactants.