Vegetable Wax Sees Opportunity From Shrinking Petroleum Wax Supply

October 6, 2004

Despite being a new entrant in the wax industry, vegetable oil-based waxes are gaining attention in major end-use markets such as in candles and cosmetics. Declining domestic petroleum wax supply, has influenced the need for alternative materials, say some wax suppliers. Consumer perception of renewable and vegetable-based ingredients will also help drive market growth for vegetable waxes and may further boost research and development to either blend of fully replace petroleum waxes in certain products.

Vegetable-based alternatives to paraffin were quite limited in both supply and functionality a few years ago. Today, the outlook is very different with many of the vegetable oil refiners in the US developing alternatives to paraffin for several different markets.  With the US Department of Agriculture estimating 1.1 billion pounds of soybean oil to be exported this next crop year, much of that could find its way into wax and wax blends to replace imported paraffin over time. It would be a great opportunity for paraffin users to substitute a shrinking supply base of domestically refined paraffin with a domestically supplied alternative. The market is expecting double-digit growth for the next several years, as investment in research and development in the vegetable oil refining industry, associations and individual companies continues. We are seeing major industries such as candles, packaging, cosmetics/personal care, construction and adhesives showing a willingness to devote research dollars in developing alternatives to their current ingredient list. We believe demand for improved waxes will always increase, and we are confident the vegetable wax industry will play a major part in developing these improvements.

Portion of article quoted from Chemical Market Reporter.

Unity Marketing Study: Candles Based Upon Soybean Oil Find A Growing Market

September 7, 2004

As the market consolidates among major candle companies with the infrastructure necessary to support distribution at mass, specialty candle companies must differentiate their products through new designs and more exclusive materials, according to Unity Marketing research. Today's candle market is a $2.783 billion industry at retail, growing from $1.8 billion in retail sales in 1996 to a peak of $2.836 billion in 2000, a 54% increase. Since then, however, the candle business has taken a bumpy road, dipping down 3.3% in 2001 then back up 1.5% in 2002 to just under the 2000 high.

"Candle marketers can't ignore the foundation shifts taking place in the market. They must develop new marketing strategies to help stay the course over the next few years until the next generation of potential young candle consumers begins their homemaking and family-building lifestage," Unity President, Danziger says.

About the Candle Consumers:

In a telephone survey conducted in September 2002 among a representative sample of U.S. households, some 62% of households surveyed reported they or someone in their household had purchased candles in the past year. "While in a consumer economy as diverse as the United States, it is stunning to find any single luxury product that a majority of households buy.  Candle consumption is spread across such a wide swath of U.S. households."

The prime target market for candles is youthful women with families. "As one of life's little luxuries, candles are purchased at about the same rate across all income levels, among all ethnicities, and at all educational levels. But several key demographic factors distinguish the candle buyers: young women, aged 44 years and under, that head families with children. This finding represents the key for candle marketers' future," Danziger notes. "Between 2005 and 2010 consumer marketers will begin to see new potential growth coming from the millennial generation consumers, the babies of the 'baby boom' generation born from 1977 on. This year the leading edge of the millennial generation turns 26, the age corresponding with first marriage. With marriage, these consumers will begin a predictable pattern of home and family-directed spending. These lifestage changes can mean growth in the candle market in the years ahead."
 

Church Candles Are Linked to Pollution

By Miguel Bustillo, LA Times Staff Writer

Going to church may be good for the soul, but some Dutch researchers say it may not be so healthy for the lungs.

The candles and incense regularly burned during religious services emit high levels of particulate matter, tiny airborne flecks considered to be one of the most harmful forms of air pollution, according to a new study by scientists at Maastricht University in the Netherlands.

Researchers measured air quality at a small chapel and a large basilica in Maastricht and found that the air in both places contained particulate matter at levels up to 20 times higher than what is considered safe to breathe under European air pollution standards. The levels were similar to those found in the air beside roads driven by 45,000 cars a day, according to findings published in the December issue of the European Respiratory Journal.

The researchers said that the pollutants should not affect the well-being of most churchgoers, but that priests and especially devout congregants who spend long periods inside poorly ventilated chapels could be endangering their health.

"It cannot be excluded that regular exposure to candle- or incense-derived particulate matter results in increased risk of lung cancer or other pulmonary diseases," wrote Theo de Kok, leader of the Maastricht team.

The paper, titled "Radicals in the Church," also noted that the air monitoring detected high levels of free radicals, or molecules that can aggravate asthma or bronchitis conditions.

The researchers studied churches because of growing interest in the health risks posed by indoor air pollution. Many scientists have begun more detailed inquiries into the health dangers found in the air indoors, where people spend most of their time.But scientific knowledge on indoor air pollution still lags behind research on outdoor air pollution from sources such as factory smokestacks and motor vehicles.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released research in 2001 concluding that burning candles and incense can be a source of particulate matter, and that burning candles with lead-core wicks can raise indoor lead levels above what the EPA recommends as safe.

In California, no single agency has the power to regulate indoor air pollution. Those duties are split among several departments, and environmentalists maintain that none conducts enough enforcement or education campaigns to adequately protect the public.

"There is bad indoor air in a lot of places, and if regulators bothered to measure more seriously in private and public places, I suspect they would find a lot of risks," said Joe Lyon of the California Environmental Rights Alliance. "It's a big, gaping hole in the regulatory scheme."

Lee H. Wallach of the Los Angeles Interfaith Environmental Council, a group that promotes environmental awareness among religious organizations, was surprised to learn about the Dutch candle study.

His group is working with 16 mosques, synagogues and churches on a "green sanctuary" program to turn them into more environmentally friendly places by converting to alternative energy sources, such as solar power, and barring carpets and cleaning materials known to give off toxic fumes.

Wallach said many houses of worship want to lead by example on environmental issues and would take the indoor air pollution findings seriously. 

"These are important issues for any indoor living or working environment," he said. "We should educate the individuals in our clergy who work in these institutions, but also the hundreds of thousands of faithful who look to us for guidance about how they can make a difference." 

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An air emission study conducted by Iowa State University demonstrates that soy wax does not emit toxic soot.  This is the clean burning solution to the candle soot problem.