I first came across argan oil while on holiday in Morocco some years ago and was amazed at its ability to soothe my sunburn as well as its sun screening properties. The Argan tree is unique to South West Morocco and the oil is made by cold pressing the seeds inside the nut of its fruit. The tree (now an endangered species) is believed to date back 25 million years and to have once covered North Africa.

The Argan grows wild in semi-desert soil, its deep root system helping to protect against soil erosion and the northern advance of the Sahara. It is perfect for this harsh environment as it can survive heat, drought and poor soil. The trunk of the argan tree is often twisted and gnarled and the fruit has a green, fleshy exterior, similar to an olive, but larger and rounder. Inside, there is a nut with a very hard shell, which contains several almond- shaped kernels.

Goats like the pulpof the argan fruits and often clamber along the branches to get at them. They will digest the pulp, but eliminate the undigested seeds in their feces. As these have shells that are softened and easier to crack, they are occasionally used to produce oil for non -culinary purposes.

The production of argan oil, which is still mostly done by traditional methods, is a lengthy process. Each nut has to be cracked open to remove the kernels, and it is said that producing one litre of oil takes 100kg of fruit and 20 hours work. The most labour intensive part is removal of the soft pulp which is used as animal feed and the cracking by hand, between two stones, of the hard nut. The seeds are then removed and gently roasted which accounts for part of the oil's distinctive, nutty flavour.

The traditional technique for oil extraction is to grind the roasted seeds to a paste with a little water in a stone rotary ‘quern’ which you can see in the photo below. The paste is then squeezed between the hands to extract the oil. The extracted paste is still rich in oil and is used as animal feed or sweetened with honey and served as a dip for bread at breakfast time in Moroccan

Berber households. Oil produced by this method will keep for 3-6 months, and will be produced as needed in a family (generally for cooking) from a store of the kernels, which will keep for 20 years unopened.

Argan oil is slightly darker than olive oil, with a reddish tinge. As well as its uses in cooking, it is claimed to have various medicinal properties, such as lowering cholesterol and in recent years there has been a growing interest in its cosmetic uses as it is very rich in Vitamin E and Omega 6 which stimulate and help re-generate skin cells. It is ideal for use before and after exposure to the sun and for mature or damaged skin as well as for acne, chapped skin, stretch marks and wrinkles.

Bottles of what pass for argan oil are sold along the roadsides in Morocco but is sometimes difficult to tell if they are genuine. Because the oil commands a high price, sellers are often tempted to dilute it with cheaper oils. Some bottles simply contain olive oil, coloured with paprika or other substances.

Argan is one of the oils we will look at on the one day CThA approved Natural Facial course in Walmer College.

NATURAL BEAUTY by Mary Dalgleish