In an effort to help save the rainforests in Malaysia and Indonesia, Lush Cosmetics has announced its intention to become a palm oil free company, and is now selling a newly formulated soap which is made with a palm-free soap base. Palm oil is found in food products, bio fuels and is a key ingredient in many cosmetics, including soaps. As part of its nationwide campaign against palm oil and the continued efforts to find alternatives to to the ingredient, Lush has announced that it is writing to the top 300 companies that use palm oil, including Procter & Gamble, Unilever and Nestle, asking them to reformulate their products to no longer include this rainforest-destroying ingredient. For companies that comply, Lush says it will supply their headquarters with a year’s supply of soap.

In order to reach the public, Lush has launched an interactive window display in 48 shops across the U.S. from August 7 to August 28. Passersby will be greeted with a giant palm tree, orangutans and the slogan, “Wash your hands of palm,” and are asked to dip their hands in green paint, add their own palm prints to make the leaves on the palm tree, and then to wash their hands with Lush’s newly formulated soap. Customers will also receive a free soap sample.

Lush says its campaign to eliminate palm oil arose out of the global demand for it as a key ingredient in processed foods as well as soaps and cosmetics. According to Lush, while the cosmetics industry uses approximately 6-7% of the global supply of palm oil, the biggest current usage is food.

Lush says demand is causing the clearing of ancient rainforests to make room for more palm oil plantations. This action, according to the company, has forced indigenous people off their land, pushed orangutans to the brink of extinction and jeopardized the eco system. With demand for palm oil increasing and the problem getting worse, Lush decided to reformulate its products, and has worked for the past three years to develop a soap base that does not contain palm oil; now, all Lush soaps are made with this palm-free base. In doing so, Lush says it is reducing the amount of palm oil it uses by 133,000 pounds or 60.5 metric tons per year – that’s 36.3 acres of primary rainforest saved from destruction. Small traces of palm oil still exist in some Lush products, but the product creators are working to find creative ways to remove the oil altogether. To increase publicity, Lush is selling a limited-edition soap called Jungle, which is shaped as a tree. All proceeds from the Jungle Soap sales will be donated to the Rainforest Foundation.