Conditioning oilPunicic-acid seed oilIn two skin-type blends

Punica Granatum (Pomegranate) Seed Oil

Punica granatum · INCI Punica Granatum Seed Oil

Pomegranate seed oil is pressed from the seeds inside the fruit. It softens the skin, and it carries punicic acid, a fatty acid found in very few other plants.

We use the seed oil for its unusual fatty acid, punicic acid. The antioxidant polyphenols pomegranate is known for are in the peel and juice.

Pomegranate seed oil, pressed from the seeds within the fruit.
Pomegranate seed oil, pressed from the seeds within the fruit.

What it is

The pomegranate is a fruit of several parts, and they are not interchangeable. The peel and juice hold the ellagitannins, the polyphenols behind most of the antioxidant research. The seed, and the oil pressed from it, hold something different, punicic acid, a conjugated fatty acid that is rare in the plant world and gives the seed oil its character. That is the part we use.

As a conditioning oil it softens and nourishes. Laboratory tests have shown antioxidant activity for punicic acid, the oil's main fatty acid.

What it does in our formulas

Pomegranate seed oil conditions the skin and carries an unusual fatty acid, punicic acid.

01

It conditions the skin

Pomegranate seed oil is a conditioning oil that softens and nourishes, sitting comfortably alongside the lighter oils in the blends it belongs to.

Well characterised
02

Its punicic acid is distinctive

The oil's main fatty acid is punicic acid, a conjugated fatty acid found in very few other plants. Laboratory tests have shown antioxidant activity for punicic acid.

Emerging evidence

What the research does not show

Pomegranate is one of the most heavily researched fruits in nutrition, and that research gets borrowed freely by skincare. The trouble is that most of it is about the wrong part of the fruit.

Marketed as A rich source of polyphenol antioxidants
The antioxidants pomegranate is famous for, the ellagitannins like punicalagin, are concentrated in the peel and the juice, not the seed oil. The oil we use carries punicic acid, a fatty acid, so we do not borrow the peel's polyphenol claims for it.
Marketed as Clinically proven to reverse ageing
Most of the skin research is on peel extracts, or is laboratory work, with only a little confirmed on people. The seed oil is a conditioning oil with an unusual fatty acid.

On the label and in the range

Pomegranate appears in the Balanced and Oily Sensitive blends, high on the ingredient list since it is one of the main oils. On the label it reads by its INCI name, shown with its common name, and marked as organic and cold-pressed. The exact percentage is published on each product page, as it is for everything we use.

Is it suitable for me?

Pomegranate seed oil is well tolerated, suits a vegan routine, and sits comfortably on sensitive skin, which is why it is part of the Oily Sensitive blend. It carries no restrictions under UK or EU cosmetic law.

Vegan-friendlySensitive-skin suitableWell tolerated

As with anything new, if your skin reacts easily it is worth patch testing first.

Naturally derived
Naturally derived
Made to be gentle on skin
Made to be gentle on skin
Every formulation published
Every formulation published

The research behind this page

We review the published literature. We do not conduct the studies below.

  1. Aslam MN, Lansky EP, Varani J. Pomegranate as a cosmeceutical source: pomegranate fractions promote proliferation and procollagen synthesis and inhibit matrix metalloproteinase-1 production in human skin cells. J Ethnopharmacol 2006;103(3):311-318. →
  2. Dermocosmetic Potential of Punica granatum: A Systematic Review of Bioactive Compounds and Skincare Applications. Antioxidants 2026;15(3):332. →
  3. Lin TK, Zhong L, Santiago JL. Anti-Inflammatory and Skin Barrier Repair Effects of Topical Application of Some Plant Oils. Int J Mol Sci 2018;19(1):70. →
Found in the Balanced and Oily Sensitive blends Shop the range