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Butters

Cocoa Butter (Theobroma Oil)

INCI Theobroma Cacao Seed Butter. Saponified with NaOH it is listed as Sodium Cocoa Butterate, with KOH as Potassium Cocoa Butterate. Also: Theobroma oil, Cacao butter, Oleum cacao, Theobroma cacao seed butter.

Calculate a 100 % Cocoa Butter (Theobroma Oil) bar

Published values

Saponification value188–198 mg KOH/g
Used by the calculator193.0 mg KOH/g (midpoint)
SAP for NaOH0.1376 g/g
Iodine value33–42 g I₂/100 g
INS (SAP − IV)156
Melting point31–35 °C
Unsaponifiable matter—

A bar made of 100 % Cocoa Butter (Theobroma Oil)

Hardness 61 above 29–54
Cleansing 0 below 12–22
Conditioning 38 below 44–69
Bubbly lather 0 below 14–46
Creamy lather 61 above 16–48

Conventional qualities summed from the fatty-acid groups; a single-oil bar is a reference point, not a recipe.

Fatty-acid profile

Fatty acidPublished range, %Used
Palmitic acid C16:0 · saturated 23–30 26.5
Stearic acid C18:0 · saturated 31–37 34.0
Oleic acid C18:1 31–38 34.5
Linoleic acid C18:2 1.6–4.8 3.2
α-Linolenic acid C18:3 n-3 0–1.5 0.8
Arachidic acid C20:0 · saturated 0–1.5 0.8

Where these numbers come from

United States Pharmacopeial Convention (USP 29-NF 24 text as mirrored at pharmacopeia.cn) — USP 29-NF 24 (2006), NF Monographs: Cocoa Butter (Official January 1, 2007), page 3315 · document dated 2007-01-01 · read 2026-09-20

Mirror site hosting the USP 29-NF 24 text; values transcribed from that page. Newer USP editions may differ.

Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Japan (Japanese Pharmacopoeia, 18th Edition, English version) — JP XVIII, Crude Drugs and Related Drugs (official monographs) · document dated 2021-06-07 · read 2026-09-20

JP XVIII 'Cacao Butter' (Oleum Cacao): melting point 31-35 C; congealing point of fatty acids 45-50 C; acid value NMT 3.0; saponification value 188-195; iodine value 35-43.

Gustav Heess GmbH (oil producer/refiner), product specification sheet — Product Specification: Cocoa butter refined (Reg-No. Sp160030e) · document dated 2026-01-22 · read 2026-09-20
Archivos Latinoamericanos de Nutricion (peer-reviewed, SciELO) — Padilla FC, Liendo R, Quintana A. Characterization of cocoa butter extracted from hybrid cultivars of Theobroma cacao L. Arch Latinoam Nutr 2000;50(2):215-222 · document dated 2000 · read 2026-09-20

Five Venezuelan hybrid cultivars: palmitic 22.9-26.1%, stearic 34.7-37.3%, oleic 36.2-39.9%, linoleic ND-1.6%; iodine value 32.5-34.1; saponification value 193.4-194.9 mg KOH/g; melting point 35-36 C.

All ranges from the USP 29-NF 24 'Cocoa Butter' monograph: iodine value 33-42; saponification value 188-198; slip point 30-34 C and clear melting point 31-35 C (meltingPointC = clear melting point); fatty-acid composition (GC, % of methyl esters): palmitate 23-30, stearate 31-37, oleate 31-38, linoleate 1.6-4.8, linolenate 0-1.5, arachidate 0-1.5; refractive index 1.454-1.459 (40 C); free fatty acids NMT 1.4 % as oleic. JP XVIII 'Cacao Butter': SAP 188-195, IV 35-43, melting point 31-35 C, acid value NMT 3.0, specific gravity 0.895-0.904 (40/20). Heess refined cocoa butter: IV 33.0-42.0, SAP 188.0-200.0, FFA max 1.75 %. Padilla et al. 2000 (five hybrid cultivars): palmitic 22.9-26.1, stearic 34.7-37.3, oleic 36.2-39.9, linoleic ND-1.6 %, IV 32.5-34.1, SAP 193.4-194.9, melting point 35-36 C. Unsaponifiable not given in USP/JP.

This record is part of the open ingredient database (ODbL). Found an error or a better primary source? The dataset is on GitHub; corrections with a document link are welcome.