There are varying qualities of cosmetic argan oil on the market, as evidenced by the wildly differing prices for oil sold on sites such as Amazon.com. There are several factors that are important in determining the quality of argan oil.
The argan nut is a hard almond-like seed, encased in an external shell and a fruity outside pulp. The nuts that are gathered for oil must have the exterior pulp intact. If there is no pulp, it means that the nut has been eaten and digested by a goat (goats love to eat the nuts) imparting a foul smell to the oil. Often, these “goat nuts” will be sold at a low price and then the oil will be deodorized, a process that destroys the essential nutrients in the oil. This is typically the case of the lower priced oils on the market.
