Surfactants are substances that lower the tension of a surface, i.e. between a liquid and a solid element. Surfactants contain both water-loving part and oil-loving part and can mix oily substances in water.
They are the workhorses of our cleaning products. In Ecover products you can find 4 different types of surfactants: Non-ionic, anionic, amphoteric & cationic surfactants. The difference between them is a difference in the charge of the water-loving part.