Green & Nutty soap nuts are an eco-friendly alternative to chemical laundry detergents in both front and top loading washing machines.

The fruit of the sapindus mukurossi tree, soap nuts contain natural saponin - the soap that cleans your clothes (or baby's nappies). Soap nuts are also traditionally used in Ayurvedic treatments for excema and psoriasis.

To use soap nuts, just put half a shell per kilogram of washing into the small cotton washbag provided, and throw in the washing machine. No need to take the bag out for the rinse cycle - soap nuts do not leave any chemical residue. This is great, as it means no detergent buildup on clothes and your greywater is safe for use on the garden. Your clothes will also be protected from fading as soap nuts have no added optical whiteners or enzymes.

The lack of added perfumes means soap nuts are great for sensitive skin, but you can add a couple of drops of essential oil to the washbag if you prefer. Because soap nuts do not leave a residue or strip your clothes of any protective barriers, there is no need for fabric softener. Some people like to add a squirt of lemon juice or a little white vinegar to the wash to brighten whites or as a softener, but this isn't usually necessary. Soap nuts are suitable for use with delicate fabrics such as silk or wool.

Soap nuts will break down over 4-6 washes - just remove the disintegrated, dark coloured shells and replace with fresh soap nuts. A 250g bag of soap nuts will last the average family around 3 months.

Kristy from the Green & Nutty Trust advises that the soap nuts, which she imports from India, are harvested by farming families for their own use. These soap nuts are excess to local requirements, and their export provides farming families with additional cash-flow.

For more information from the manufacturer, click here.