Glazing agents are often used to coat confectionary and cakes to make them more appealing. One of the glazing agents in common use which includes beeswax is another wax extracted from the leaves of two species of candelilla shrub. These shrubs are small ones growing in their native region of northern Mexico and the southwestern United States. The sources are Euphorbia cerifera and Euphorbia antisyphilitica, from the family Euphorbiaceae.
Regulations
The wax is a food additive with the E number 902. It is often used in the cosmetics industry especially lip balms and in manufacturing some lipsticks. It is also a binder for chewing gums where it is commonly incorporated into the gum base.
Extraction From Leaves
The wax is obtained by boiling the leaves and stems with dilute sulfuric acid, and the resulting “cerote” is skimmed from the surface and further processed.
Composition
The wax has a melting point of between 68.5 and 72.5 °C which makes it ideal as a glazing medium. All waxes are insoluble in water but organic solvents will readily dissolve this wax
The wax is mainly composed of the following:- mainly hydrocarbons (about 50%, chains with 29–33 carbons), esters of higher molecular weight (20–29%), free acids (7–9%), and resins (12–14%, mainly triterpenoid esters).
Carnauba wax is a similar wax but has a lower hydrocarbon content than candelilla wax.
Reference
Uwe Wolfmeier,Hans Schmidt, Franz-Leo Heinrichs, Georg Michalczyk, Wolfgang Payer,Wolfram Dietsche, Klaus Boehlke, Gerd Hohner, Josef Wildgruber. (2002) “Waxes” in Ullmann’s Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry, Wiley-VCH, Weinheim, doi:10.1002/14356007.a28_103
Not the same as beeswax but I think it is a good vegan alternative. Looking forward to using it.
The most important feature for me about candelilla is that it is ideal for vegans. It has been a real problem for me finding vegan waxes for cosmetics and I was utterly shocked when my lip balm contained beeswax. My favourite was being put on my lips and I did not appreciate how I was putting a nasty animal product on my lips. Like your item on making a lipstick but I think you need to discuss vegan options more often for cosmetics.