What is Tagua Nut?

Tagua (”tah-gwa”), also called ‘ivory nut’ or ‘vegetable ivory’ is the dried seedpod of the Tagua Palm tree (Phytelephas Macrocarpa) which grows in tropical rainforests of South America.

Interesting Facts

• Tagua nuts grow in large armoured clusters with each cluster containing many nuts. They range in size from a small olive to an orange and average about the size of a walnut.
• Chemically they are pure cellulose and before nuts mature they contain a milky liquid in the centre.
• When ripe, the nuts fall to the ground and are gathered and dried from four to eight weeks, after which they become extremely hard.

The Process

• The big and ripened clusters are collected from the ground and then selected.
• They are dried from four to eight weeks, after which they become hard.
• Small shells that contain the nuts are extracted from clusters
• Shells are cracked to extract the nuts, and each nut is cleaned
• Tagua can be used with the natural brown skin or without the skin. To use the seedpod with the skin each nut is filed and polished
• To use the seedpod without the skin, the next step is to peel it completely and polish the outside of the seedpod. For the marbled look, the skin is peeled only partially.
• Using a saw, Tagua nuts are sliced or cut in the desired shape.   Holes are then drilled depending on the purpose and design.
• Once whole nuts or slices are ready and depending on the purpose, the next step is to dye pieces in desired colors.
• Once the dyeing process is finished and pieces dry, artisans can startputting together beautiful and creative designs
• Finally the only thing left is to enjoy these beautiful creations

Tips When Buying Tagua

The nut is hollow in the middle with a small canal running to its base, but that does not mean that all Tagua slices come with a hole. Holes in Tagua slices are signs of improper and accelerated drying process. Properly dried slices do not have any cracks or holes.

• If the proper production process is not followed, Tagua nuts can go bad or moldy. When using vegetable dyes the color of the beads may discolor a little, after two or three uses the beads should not discolor at all.
• Avoid using alcohol or perfumes, various chemicals may cause the color to run.
• When ordering directly or online make sure that the company is well established and guarantees the quality of the product they sell. As well, look for customer reviews or ratings.
• When buying directly from producers make sure they do not use child labor.
• Make sure that companies claiming to be certified as fair trade or eco friendly have some way to prove these claims. The best is to look for certification by one of generally recognized independent organizations such as the Fair Trade Federation, Co-op America, etc.