Most of us grow up with a healthy dose of bee fear, which is not surprising given the risks and discomforts of stings — particularly for those with bee allergies. While this presents a PR problem for the apian sort, pollinating bees are essential to large sectors of agribusiness, making “busy as a bee” more than an amusing alliterative. And if that weren’t enough, we have honey bees to thank for their mythically sweet, viscous, golden drool.
Recently, I have come to appreciate honey in other guises.
I came across a line of personal care products called The Naked Bee. The company’s motto is “all the good stuff, none of the bad stuff.” After yet another news alert about creepy chemicals lurking in lotions and such, The Naked Bee labeling called out to me.
I have been using the Moisturizing Hand & Body Lotion tinged with orange blossom honey, and it is fantastic! The skin loves this lotion and so does the nose. A beautifully orange tinged scent hovers in the air, and the senses go “ahhh.” Fortunately, the aroma is gentle and does not fight with other product lines I have been trying that contain notes of ginger, olive oil, lemon, avocado — tossed salad anyone? This link will take you to a site with a store locator tab to find The Naked Bee products sold near you.
Everyone has probably tried some of the items made by the Burt’s Bees company. I especially like their honey Natural Throat Drops when I need some soothing relief for a scratchy throat. This company was started when environmentalist and entrepreneur Roxanne Quimby encountered Maine bee keeper Burt Shavitz’s bees wax lip balm. The product line expanded, sales soared, she bought out Burt’s share of the bee-based empire, and then sold the company in 2007 to Clorox (really?).
Since then, Quimby has continued her work as a passionate environmentalist. In fact, she is on a quest to donate 70,000 acres to create a Maine Woods National Park. If she can survive the buzz saw of opposition by snowmobilers and paper companies, the nation will acquire its first new park in several decades. Imagine if more of the “1 percenters” cooked up dreams like this, versus funneling oodles into distorting the electoral process. THAT would create some buzz destined to last longer than a day’s news cycle!
Photo Credit: Bee and honey by Andrea Bonsignore, featuring paintings by Roger Kizik.
