Bayberry wax

Bayberry wax is an aromatic green vegetable wax. It is removed from the surface of the fruit of the bayberry (wax-myrtle) shrub (ex. Myrica cerifera) by boiling the fruits in water and skimming the wax from the surface of the water.^[1] Unlike other plant waxes, it is made up primarily of esters of lauric, myristic, and palmitic acid.^[2]

Bayberry wax is used primarily in the manufacture of scented candles^[3] and other products where its distinctive resinous fragrance is desirable.

The fats that comprise bayberry wax are not produced and stored inside the fruit cells like they are in seeds; instead, the plant uses an unusual assembly line that starts with a basic fat building block and finishes putting the final fats together on the fruit’s surface, much like how plants make their protective skin.^[4] This explains the massive wax buildup, which helps attract birds to spread the seeds, and gives scientists a potential new way to engineer plants that can produce useful oils on leaves or fruits without clogging up the cells inside.^[4]

• Melting point = 39–49 °C (102–120 °F)^[5]
• Acid value = 3.5^[6]
• Saponification value = 205–217^[6]
• Iodine number = 1.9–3.9^[5]

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