Talk about this Grommet

Jennie Green, Special Guest

Good afternoon. I'm delighted to be here today. Arghand is a business cooperative in Kandahar, Afghanistan that was founded by Sarah Chayes, formerly an international correspondent for National Public Radio. Its purpose is to contribute to the econ… read more
Rebecca Gerstel

I am in love with this idea and commend everyone involved in this project! I'm hoping to purchase soaps for all my friends and family this holiday season but it appears I bought the last one! Hoping that there will be more to buy soon. Purchasing … read more
Beth Grader

@Connie Piper: Hi Connie
You do not know me but my step-son Derek served in the Marine Corp in 2005 and knew your husband. My son, Jake Grader recently returned from Afghanistan and I am very interested in helping the people of this country. Current… read more
Jennie

Proceeds from the sale of Arghand products go directly back into the
cooperative to cover Afghanistan operating expenses, which include salaries for our Afghan members. Because Arghand has not yet achieved self-sufficiency,due mostly to productio… read more

Arghand Cooperative

SKincare and Soap from Afghanistan

Assortment includes five of the following: Amandine, Anisette, Desert Fields, Elixir of Artemis, Kan...

Assortment includes five of the following: Amandine, Anisette, Desert Fields, Elixir of Artemis, Kandahar Rose, Mountain Herb, Pomegranate, or Thornblossom.

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Story

Washing Away the Opium Trade

Think of farming in Afghanistan and you probably think of one crop: opium. Over 90 percent of the world’s opium supply comes from this tiny war torn nation. Cash from that crop mostly goes to fund the Taliban and Al Qaeda, leaving Afghan workers earning a paltry $100 per month.

Sarah Chayes, Arghand In 2002, National Public Radio (NPR) reporter Sarah Chayes tossed aside her tape recorder and dedicated herself to changing the lives of those underpaid Afghanis. “Stop talking about it already—do something,” she says her conscience told her. After cutting her teeth cleaning up a bombed-out village and running a dairy co-op, Chayes started a cooperative called Arghand.

Arghand’s dozen or so male and female workers craft soap pebbles using age-old Buy Arghand's handcrafted soap pebbles here. techniques. Oprah was impressed enough to give Chayes a “Chutzpah” award. The soaps are a winner, too. Each one takes a total of six weeks to make. The result is a dense and long-lasting soap that resembles a beautiful stone polished by river water. All of the natural ingredients are painstakingly gathered from around Kandahar in Southern Afghanistan. The enterprise encourages farmers to plant crops like apricots, pomegranates, spices and herbs — instead of opium.

Arghand means “triumphant” in Persian. That’s how you’ll feel using these beautiful soaps that just might make the future of Afghanistan a little more bright and shiny.

— Emily C.

Details

Arghand Soaps are made and molded by hand from the fruit crops and botanicals of Southern Afghanistan

Arghand is a cooperative made up equally of men and women
Sales of the products guarantee their livelihood and offer Southern Afghan farmers an alternative to growing opium
An assortment of “pebbles” includes five of the following: Amandine, Anisette, Desert Fields, Elixir of Artemis, Kandahar Rose, Mountain Herb, or Pomegranate, or Thorn Blossom
Approximate size 1 1/2” x 2 1/2” each pebble 9 oz
Ingredients: palm oil, well water, coconut oil, lye, cold pressed pomegranate seed oil and several of the following: cold-pressed sweet almond, wild almond, anise, apricot kernel, castor, cumin, hemp, or wild pistachio oils; rosewater, water of wild mint or salvia spinosa; essential oils of Artemisia cina, Artemisia persica, wild mint or Salvia spinosa; and steeped vegetable dyes