CHUKAI - A Malay Language teacher at Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Seberang Tayor, Kemaman, here, has been able to produce multi-purpose soap using only used cooking oil and two other basic ingredients.
Nor Halimah Sa'diah Awang@Abdullah, 50, said she began making the soap three years ago for washing dishes, laundry, and personal hygiene for use by her family.
"This soap only requires used cooking oil, water and sodium hydroxide. It does not need to be cooked. It only needs to be stirred until dissolved using a hand blender and then poured into the desired moulds.
"However, it needs to be left to rest for four weeks to be completely safe before it can be used as soap for bathing, washing dishes, laundry, and many other purposes," she said when met at the Cooking Oil Recycling Skill Enhancement Workshop organised by Petronas and the Kemaman Municipal Council (MPK) here recently.
According to the teacher, she was motivated to create this innovation after being actively involved in recycling programmes since 2012.
She said the practice of recycling, including used cooking oil, can help reduce the amount of waste produced in the environment and able to generate additional income for the community.
Although her soap has not been clinically tested, she believes that her product is not harmful to users because it contains natural glycerin, which is gentle on the skin.
"At first, it was indeed difficult to convince people to use the soap because it uses used cooking oil.
"However, after explaining and giving samples for them to try, many are interested in buying it, but due to time constraints, I can only produce about 15 kilogrammes a month, which I sell only to restaurant owners and grocery stores due to time constraints," said the teacher, who is also active in organising recycling workshops for school students.
Meanwhile, Petronas Eastern Region Office senior manager Mohd Munawir Mahdun said the Cooking Oil Recycling Skills Improvement Workshop is one of the activities under Petronas' social impact pilot project in collaboration with Yayasan Hijau Malaysia and MPK.
He said a total of 40 women were selected to participate in the programme which aims to generate side income for the local community, especially from the B40 group.
"In addition to helping to generate income for the community, we hope to increase the public awareness of proper and systematic solid waste management practices.
"The practice of recycling needs to be applied at all levels of society for environmental sustainability,” he said. - BERNAMA