The Portland Press Herald

by Avery Yale Kamila

Maine Companies are Whipping Up More Vegan Products, From Soap to Pasta Sauce

Beer into soap

...Noticing the similarities between beer brewing and skin care ingredients, Elaine Kinney of South Portland married the two to create the all-vegan soap business White Pine Bath & Brew. The company, based in Kinney’s home, adds new soap varieties with the seasons while maintaining a consistent stock of best-selling varieties such as lemongrass, shea & IPA; coffee brew bar; sea salt & clay; and Maine woodsman. Traditionally, soaps were made with animal-based ingredients, such as tallow, milk or honey, hence the need for vegan soaps. Most commercial soaps today, though, are made from synthetic oils, not tallow.

White Pine Bath & Brew uses vegan beers to make its vegan soaps. 

“I’ve had customers come up to me and tell me that their grandmother swears by rinsing her hair in beer,” Kinney said. “Beer brings added benefits to skin due to the brewer’s yeast and hops that it contains. The amino acids in hops can soothe irritated skin. The brewer’s yeast is loaded with riboflavin, pantothenic acid, biotin and a number of other essential B vitamins. Beer also contributes to a more luxurious lather.”

White Pine sources vegan beers from local breweries. The company also makes vegan beard oil and beard balm. White Pine Bath & Brew’s products can be found at WeeMaine in Portland’s Old Port, at makers’ markets and brewery pop-ups, and online at whitepinebathbrew.com.