Earth Day
As makers of consumable products how do we reconcile environmental concerns and waste. Some of what we do is just baked into how we operate, but there is room for improvement.
How we minimize our impact on the environment:
Scale: We operate on a small scale and sell one batch before making new batches. Direct to consumer sales means more product gets into the hands of folks who use it.
Community Attitude: We don’t make ALL the things. We support and actively promote connecting YOU with the products you need, even if it’s made by another small, woman owned company.
Strategic Partners: We only work with a few key retailers so we can manage batch sizes, reduce spoilage, and buy back unsold product.
Packaging: The only box currently available is made with paper manufactured here in Michigan at a family owned business using hydro-power... everything else is wrapped and shipped in recyclable paper.
Refilling: Lotions, body oils and hydrosols are packaged with twist off tops, for easy cleaning and refilling by you or by me. We are often asked to refill bottles and are happy to oblige - this works best with local consumers.
Empowering Home-made: Facilitating workshops, sharing recipes and encouraging hand-made/home-made skincare from easily sourced ingredients that you package in your own jars without commercial labeling reduces the impact on the environment.
Petrochemical-free skincare: There is no way to produce without some kind of impact, but we don’t use janky chemicals made from crude oils, polymers or lab constructed ingredients.
Recycling: Though recycling isn’t available in our building, we haul all the stuff home for curbside recycling - or take to the recycle center
One area I’ve identified as needing improvement is shipping. We use way too much plastic tape on our boxes, and to adhere labels. We will tackle this in 2021.
A last thought... we tend to think of “natural'“ as shorthand for harmless; to ourselves, and to the Environment. But all ingredients have a consequence whether they are lab synthesized or harvested from nature. The consumers desire for ‘natural’ has some pretty dire demands on plant and animal life.
Palm oil harvesting threatens orangutans
Vanilla orchids are pollinated by hand —those folks don’t see much money
Sandalwood is nearly extinct
Galbanum from Somalia is hardly “conflict free”
I do believe we are worthy of luxurious products and that we can consume in ways that are conscientious by making things ourselves, buying local and shopping small.
