The argan tree produces a nut so revered for its ability to cure dry skin and protect hair and skin. These trees and nuts can be found in a coastal town of Morocco called Essaouira, once a Portuguese fishing village now populated largely by Berbers. The road from Marrakesh to Essaouira is rocky and desolate, dotted only by a few roadside Berber towns.  

Argan oil is made from the nuts of the argan tree, which grows almost exclusively in this area. The oil, which locals claim has restorative and age-defying effects, is the latest miracle ingredient in the beauty industry. High in vitamin E and essential fatty acids, it is believed to help all sorts of skin conditions: dry skin, acne, psoriasis, eczema, wrinkles. Moroccans use it on and in everything: skin, hair, nails and even their babies. They eat it, too — mixing it into salads and couscous, or using it to make a tahini-like spread of the oil, almonds and honey.

When searching out the “manufacturing” source of this miracle ingredient, you know you are close when you are passing the olive groves and grazing donkeys. You cannot miss the signs announcing the women-run argan cooperatives: Argan Co-Op, Women’s Argan Collective, Miracle Oil – you get the idea. If you pull over to a cooperative, the Berber women — yes only women make the argan oil — will often invite you in to watch them work, even help. In most of the cooperatives, the older village women sit in the courtyard and work as the younger bilingual girls walk you around, giving a tutorial about the process.

You can get it at Sephora – Josie Maran $48 for 2 oz.

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