ARGAN TREE
Photo essay about argan oil in Morocco : from the cropping to the bottling. Arganeraie (Argania spinosa) in the Anti-Atlas, in the south-west of Morocco. Oil argan is used both for food (image 0626107) and cosmetics (images 0626307 and 0615307). It is an oil rich in oleic acid (monounsaturated fatty acid) and in linoleic acid (polyunsaturated fatty acid of the omega 6 series). The linoleic acid is an essential fatty acid, which means that the organism is not capable of making it itself : it must be brought by food. Argan oil is also rich in vitamine E, with anti-oxydant proprieties. In cosmetics, it is helful for the care of hair, nail and skin : its richness in omega 6 and in vitamine E would prevent from cutaneous dehydration and ageing. The argan oil is extracted from the almonds of the argan fruit (Argania spinosa). The argan tree is a tree exclusively present in the arid and semi-arid areas of the south-west of Morocco (image 0627307). Its fruits, the argans (image 0627207), contain a very hard nut (image 0626607) holding from one to three almonds (image 0626707), or kernels, rich in oil. The fabrication of oil is undertaken by Moroccan women ; it can be entirely manual or partially mechanized. According to the artisanal method, first of all the fruits are cleaned from their pulp to collect the nuts. Theses are then crushed to extract the almonds (image 0626907). Then, the almonds are crushed with a kind of hand grinder (image 0626807). Finally, the paste obtained, added to water, is mixed for a long time and pressed to extract oil.
Size: 5263px × 3516px
Photo credit: © RIGOULET / BSIP / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: 1, africa, angiosperm, angiospermae, argan, argania, dicot, dicots, dicotyledon, dicotyledons, eudicotyledon, eudicotyledons, exterior, heavenly, heavens, individual, individuality, lonesome, magnoliophyta, morocco, north, oneself, outdoor, outdoors, plant, plants, sapotaceae, single, skies, sky, sky-pointing, sp, spinosa, tree, trees, vegetals
