Green Chemistry calls for the design of products and processes that decrease, or completely eliminate, the use and generation of substances that are harmful to human health and the environment. The United States Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, applies Green Chemistry to “…the life-cycle of a product, including its design, manufacture, and use” [1]. For the cosmetics world, companies that adapt this philosophy create products that are environmentally friendly and safe for human health during all stages of their production.

Bee Naturals and Green Chemistry

Bee Naturals values Green Chemistry as a philosophy and applies its principles to the manufacturing process of all its products, from start to finish. Application of this philosophy is found in Bee Naturals product ingredients, sustainable product packaging, and the safe outputs each product has on human health and the environment.

Product Ingredients:

Bee Naturals founder, Barbara Chappuis, has never been one to take shortcuts or cut corners. The world of cosmetics is cutthroat, and consumers want to make sure that what they are putting on their bodies is safe and natural. It is hard to find a company that places honesty above making a quick buck. They take advantage of consumer trends and market themselves to fit the mold, but a closer look often reveals the ugly truth. Chappuis has given her company a transparency rarely seen in the cosmetics industry. Involved in every aspect of her business, she truly cares about what goes into each product.

A chemist at heart, Chappuis is a real innovator, reformulating products with safe ingredients that deliver the results that customers expect. In order to keep her company natural, the founder has chosen to obtain ingredients from sources that shun the use of pesticides.   This elimination of pesticides from Bee Naturals products is a prime example of Green Chemistry, as it decreases the use of a substance that is harmful to our health and the environment.

Sustainable Packaging:

All Bee Naturals product packages are fully recyclable, and their codes are proudly displayed on the bottom. Even the paper materials are 100 percent compostable, including the product labels. The company recycles all containers and boxes. Chappuis proudly boasts of her company’s sustainability:  “Bee Naturals produces almost no trash. In fact, 85 percent of everything that comes in the door is either recycled or reused.” Checking out at one of the brand’s retail locations requires no paper at all, using an iPad, you are given the option of having your receipt emailed to you. This is the sort of “process” that Green Chemistry urges companies to design.

Safe Outputs:

As previously mentioned, Green Chemistry must be applied to the life cycle of a product, from start to finish, from design to use. The safe outputs of Bee Naturals products prove the philosophy being upheld to the very end. The Natural Insect Repellent, for instance, does not harm the person or the environment during its use. Commercial brand bug sprays, on the other hand, rely on hazardous chemicals that are harmful not only to our health but also to our sensitive ecosystems [2]. When you use one of these commercial products, the synthetic pesticides are often carried through the air to different pieces of land after they are sprayed. Scientists have linked reproductive issues of certain animals to the spread of synthetic pesticides that occurs from human use. Bee Naturals insect repellent simply repels pests.

References
https://www2.epa.gov/green-chemistry
https://www.nature.com/scitable/blog/green-science/the_dangers_of_pesticides