Behind every bottle of Atlas Pure, there is a story. The story of women's cooperatives in Morocco's Souss region, of know-how handed down from generation to generation, and of a commitment to ethical, fair trade. Here is what you are really buying when you choose Atlas Pure.

GIE Targanine: who are they?

Founded in 2003 and based in Agadir, GIE Targanine (GIE stands for Groupement d'Intérêt Économique, an economic interest group) brings together six women's cooperatives from the Souss region. A specialist in argan oil, it also produces prickly pear seed oil.

The women of the cooperatives handle collection, sorting, pressing and filtration. Improving the incomes and living conditions of rural women lies at the heart of its mission.

Why it matters: in rural Morocco, women's work is still often poorly paid. Targanine's Fair for Life certification covers, among other things, a fair price, a development fund and decent working conditions.

An artisanal and rigorous extraction process

Extracting prickly pear seed oil is painstaking work, largely done by hand, with a very low yield. Here is why this oil is so rare, and so precious.

From fruit to your skin: the complete chain

1
Harvesting the fruit The prickly pears are hand-picked in summer. According to Targanine, it takes nearly a tonne of fruit to obtain about one liter of oil.
2
Drying and seed extraction The pulp is removed, then the seeds are washed and dried before pressing. The work is largely done by hand.
3
Cold pressing The dried seeds are mechanically cold-pressed, without heat or solvents, to preserve the oil's natural components: fatty acids, vitamin E, phytosterols.
4
Filtration and quality control Filtration, followed by quality checks carried out by the cooperative as part of its ISO 22716 certification.
5
Packaging and shipping Filled into airtight bottles, protected from light, then shipped.

4 certifications that speak for themselves

Targanine holds these four certifications, issued by independent bodies:

🌿

Bio Ecocert

Organic farming: no synthetic pesticides or chemical fertilizers. Audited every year by an independent body.

✦

Cosmos

International standard for organic and natural cosmetics, covering the origin of ingredients and processing methods.

🤝

Fair for Life

Fair trade: fair price, development fund, decent working conditions, no child labor.

🏭

ISO 22716

International Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standard for cosmetics: hygiene, traceability, quality control.

Why we work with them, and not someone else

There are many prickly pear seed oil suppliers, some offering much lower prices. Here is what guided our choice:

What it means for you

When you buy a bottle of Atlas Pure, you are paying first and foremost for a pure oil, obtained under ethical conditions, from a certified fair trade supply chain that benefits the women who produce it.

This is what we call conscious beauty.

Oil made by the women of the Souss, for you.

Produced by Targanine, a cooperative certified Ecocert organic, Cosmos and Fair for Life. 15 ml or 30 ml, optional thuya wood gift box.

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