I got a new bail of Irish Spring soap the other day and noticed that there was an expiration date on the package. This made me wonder what exactly would "expire." I found this answer over at PeakYard.com. "Irish Spring is the third most popular bar soap in the United States according to 2018 data by Statista. Dove and Dial take the first and second place spots, respectively. Given the popularity of Irish Spring soap and our own curiosity, we decided to research the question “Does Irish Spring soap expire?”. We think it’s a good question given that many people likely believe bar soap last forever or at least many years into the future. We contacted Colgate-Palmolive, the manufacturers of Irish Spring, to obtain some clarity on if or when Irish Spring soap expires. The company indicated the following regarding the expiration: Our Irish Spring Bar Soaps expire two years after the day they are manufactured. To check the manufacture date, there is a LOT Code on the overwrap and the box. If the product is beyond its shelf life, the efficacy and aesthetic aspects, such as color, fragrance, flavor (emphasis mine) and consistency, may change, but the product does not become harmful or unsafe to use. The LOT code is read by using the first number to determine the year, and the next three numbers to determine the day of manufacture. For example, 8102 would indicate the product was manufactured in 2018 on the 102nd day of the year, or April 12th. Any letters or numbers indicated after the first four are a location and time designation and do not relate to when the product was manufactured or when it expires. So, if you keep your Irish Spring bar soap stored away for a while, you may want make note of the manufacturing date. Use the soap within two years of this date to be sure it gets your body clean as intended." ____________________________________________________________________ I'm not so concerned about the "flavor" and nothing else really affects the way the soap works. I have noticed that older Irish Spring has less scent, and that's okay with me. I didn't think soap "expired" in any meaningful way. I'm sure I have a case of Ivory that's pre-Y2K and have a couple of Grandma's fancy engraved scented soaps from the 1940's or 50's that are still new in their decorative boxes. Should probably list those on E-bay. I also suspect that as the soap gets older it dries out and lasts longer. Same for stick deodorant. Not good for sales, but they still do the job as intended after long term storage.
I remember trying Irish Spring when it first came out. I bugged my Mother until she bought some, and I broke out in hives. Since then I use Ivory.
You make a very valuable point. This is why we must use our preps. To see if they work for us or not. That brings back foggy memories. I'd come home on leave after several years overseas and something in a soap or detergent that Mom used caused me to break out in hives. I remember driving Mom's 1978 VW Rabbit 45 miles to Selfridge Air National Guard base to go to sickbay. I had to constantly be aware of where I was on the trip so I didn't start driving on the wrong side of the road. They prescribed some pills that put me to sleep through an entire Easter weekend at Grandma's. There are pictures. All dressed up in my Sunday go to meeting clothes, and sound asleep on the sofa. It did fix up my hives, but I lost a couple days leave in a total fog.
Even the best soaps go bad over time! Most will stay shelf stable for several years if kept in a cool dry place! I had a bar of that really awesome LAVA soap, made from real Lava ( volcanic ash from Mt.St.Helens) and it was still good 30 years later when I found it in my stash, still in it's original wrapper! Took it out and started using it for the summer months, and then put it away forgetting all about it until the next greasy hands stretch when I went to use it again, and it was a shriveled up stick about half the size of what I had put away! Dad found a bar of soap he had put in the pantry at least 15 years ago, and it was still brand new, course he used it all up, but it was good the whole time! Don't know what they are making now days, but it ain't the same as what we had 15 or more years ago! I only use Ivory unscented soap or Castle soap now I find less is more, and less wasteful, and likely better for the septic too!
In the Navy we exclusively used Ivory, as it had no dyes or additives, and wouldn't stain or yellow the white cotton Dixie Cup hat or the white piping on our Cracker Jack uniform, when cleaning them. Old habits never die, I still use Ivory.
Good ole hog lard lye soap for me..... Just gotta remember to cure it long enough or it will take more layers of skin off than you want
still have some Lava bars from the early 70s - some guy at a flea market stole a few cases from work and was selling it for a dime a bar or something that low >> bought a crapload .... laundry bar soap is handy to have around - clean just about anything and it doesn't break down floating in the water .....
I have a vintage bar of lie soap still wrapped tightly in the original package. I have been using Irish Spring for many years and had no issues at all. However I have noticed that because they are packaged in simple card board paper boxes the soap diminishes in size over time. I was thinking of putting the remaining bars in plastic bags to prevent further deterioration.
Reading this made me open a bar of Safequard from 1993. Hard and has cracks, no smell. Still lathers up.
Best scented soap I ever used was a locally made bar that had Rosemary in it. Just fresh Rosemary, plucked off the stalk and stirred into the soap vat. It smelled wonderful and the evergreen pieces gave it a little better scrubbing ability. Not as good as pumice, but way more exotic.
I have some from 2015 or 2016. I bought a Sam's Club FLDS family pack, then found out wife doesn't like it. It still has that Irish spring smell.
Few years back I was going through an old pack I hadn't used in almost 30 years and found a half used bar. Lost some of its scent but still did the job. That's why I keep a stash of 100 bars somewhere safe. Godspeed
Maybe intended for those who are still willing to wash their children's mouths out with soap? To ensure they're using the freshest product available, of course!
I usually use Irish Spring soap, but a buddy recently started making lye soap. I just go visit him for a resupply now, works out great. I still have a pretty good supply of Irish Spring, got a pack of it from Sam's club and I'm the only one in the house that uses it, so it lasts quite a while. As far as the expiration date, even bottle water has an expiration date so no surprise anymore on what the government requires to have an expiration date.
