The true cost of organic
At Bee Potion we pride ourselves on our ethics and as a Community Interest Company, our values, our community and our planet's ecology come before profit.
When it comes to our skincare formulas, we choose organic ingredients over non-organic for a number of reasons. This means that our costs are much higher as organic ingredients come at a premium. However, for us, the cost to the natural environment is what we would be paying if we didn't buy organic.
As a small and responsible manufacturer, we want to ensure the natural environment always comes first. Ultimately we are responsible for our impact on world and by choosing organically produced ingredients we know that everything from seed to blending these precious oils are the best for our pollinators, our water sources, our soils and also for your skin.
Here are some examples of why we use 100% organic ingredients in our BEE PURE moisturiser and the softest, purest beeswax from ethical beekeepers and loved bees.
Hold onto your seat, here are some truths about the most common ingredients found in non-organic skincare alternatives...
ALMOND OIL
Most almond oil comes from America, where by law all almonds must be pasteurised. This was due to a salmonella outbreak in 2000. However, the huge American almond industry, responded with the quickest fix; by using a toxic chemical called, 'PROPYLENE OXIDE' or PPO.
This is a volatile, colourless, inflammable liquid with a characteristic odour similar to ether. Known as the universal reagent for its excellent chemical properties, it is a highly reactive chemical used as a feedstock for the production of many commercial materials. This chemical is used in plastics, foam products, car seats, building insulation, and is produced on an industrial scale. Shockingly it seems to be in almost every industry and it has been proven to be a carcinogen.
Not all almond producers use PPOs but it is likely that their crops will be sprayed with the pesticide (commonly found in domestic garden weed killers) known as 'GLYPHOSATE'. According to EPA documents from October 5th, 2015, 85% of almonds are treated with glyphosate, even though the State of California said that it is known “to cause cancer.”
And if that wasn't enough to make you scratch your head and wonder why people are still using these chemicals; the latest research on the world’s most-used weed-killer found that it damages the beneficial bacteria in the guts of honeybees and makes them more prone to deadly infections. Check out this article written in the Guardian about the dangers of glyphosate to bees and why we should all be looking to use natural weed killers.
I must say, this year more than ever, I have seen bees dying on the footpath near our hives. As much as I love the fact that we live in a garden and allotment rich area in Hastings - with abundant forage - if our neighbours are treating their flora with toxic weed killer they could be killing bees too. Check out these articles for 15 ways to make your own natural weed killer, from Good Housekeeping.
So back to BEE PURE ingredients...
MACADAMIA NUT OIL
Macadamia Nuts, originated in Queensland, Australia but are grown all over the world in Hawaii, California, South Africa, Kenya, and Malawi. Again in America they are treated with 'ALTRAZINE', the second-most widely used herbicide in the U.S. behind glyphosate. Like glyphosate it is likely just as dangerous and is most infamously an endocrine disruptor. While other countries have banned the herbicide, atrazine is the most common chemical contaminant in U.S. water supplies where it destroys aquatic ecosystems.
APRICOT KERNEL OIL
Apricots are grown worldwide, primarily in Armenia, Afghanistan, Iran, Italy, Turkey, Morocco, France and the United States. California, with 9,400 acres planted, leads American production, accounting for approximately 95% of the total U.S. production (NASS 2014).
Being a stone fruit, like many fruit in the Dirty Dozen list of most contaminated fruit and vegetables, Apricots have a thin skins so absorb much of what is sprayed on to them. The Pesticide Action Network UK has combined the latest available data from 2018 and 2019 and is particularly interesting when it comes to talking about 'The Cocktail Effect' of all these insecticides, herbicides and fungicides becoming more harmful when consumed together.
As well as glyphosate, there are two other chemicals that we should be concerned about:
'CHLORPYIFOS' (insecticide) - recently banned for use in the EU. In multiple epidemiological studies, chlorpyrifos exposure during pregnancy or childhood has been linked with lower birth weight and neurological changes such as slower motor development and attention problems. Chlorpyrifos is also a suspected endocrine-disrupter.
'DIFENCONAZOLE' (fungicide) - appears as a residue on the majority of the Dirty Dozen. Many of the ‘azole’ class of fungicides, of which this is one, are suspected endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs). Difenconazole is also a possible human carcinogen and reproductive or developmental toxin, meaning that it can have adverse effects on sexual function and fertility, reduce the number and functionality of sperm and cause miscarriages.
If these pesticides have such an adverse affect on humans, the damage they can do to honey bees and other pollinators must be exponentially worse. It is the consequences of the application of these chemicals and the damage they do to our soils, water sources and pollinators that is the price that we pay if we don't choose organic products. THIS is why we choose to use only certified organic oils in our potions and why buying Bee Potion is not just better for your skin, but you are also choosing a brand that won't stand for exploitative practices that damage the world's ecology.
It is our responsibility to purchase wisely and understand what it is when we are buying, which is why we only work with certified and trusted suppliers for all the ingredients that don't come directly from our own naturally and sustainably kept bees.
We want to give you, ecology and our bees the best in life.
Sources:
https://livingmaxwell.com/conventional-almonds-propylene-oxide-ppo-health-risks
https://draxe.com/health/atrazine/ http://fruitandnuteducation.ucdavis.edu/fruitnutproduction/Apricot/
https://www.pan-uk.org/dirty-dozen/