World Bee Day

Saturday 17th August is World Bee Day! An entire day dedicated to bees, all that they do and why we should be making a conscious effort to save them. Here at Calissa we are making a conscious effort to be more ethical and sustainable just the same as most of our brands we sell. One of the brands who are hugely supporting World Bee Day is Dr Hauschka, an organic, medicinal plant using and NATRUE certified brand. Based on the massive support this day is receiving I have decided to talk about the benefits and importance of this day and of course the bees it supports.

Bees are commonly known for their honey and pollinating abilities but very few understand the importance of their role within our ecosystem!

Bees assist in the growing of trees and flowers, if cross-pollination was to stop, its fair to say our world would not be as green and wonderful as it is today and let's face it, our planet is suffering and is nowhere near as full of nature as it used to be.. Imagine if bees just weren’t here anymore? It would be a pretty bleak place to live.

Pollination allows plants to grow and spread. This is because bees fly from flower to plant leaving behind traces of pollen. This pollen will be a combination of male (anther) and female (stigma) so many plants require both in order to bloom and without it would eventually die out leaving animals with no food. Not only do bees pollinate the pretty flowers that brighten up our garden but they are responsible for around $30 billion each year in crops!

I don’t want this blog post to be all doom and gloom, there is still hope for the estimated 16,000 species of bee. Granted not all of these bees make honey and wax however they are busy at work supporting our ecosystem and planet!

How can we help?

#1 Stop using pesticides and plant killers! Bees can pollinate around 90% of flowers and help your garden bloom into something beautiful! Embrace the wild!

#2 Be ethical in your decision making. There has been a drastic increase in honey sales, with more people being conscious about what they’re eating honey has become a healthy alternative to sugar! While I am all for healthy living if the bees disappear there will be no honey left to consume. Buy your honey locally from a reliable and trustworthy source or look for fair trade - Yes it's more expensive but it's a small price to pay!

#3 Beekeepers - only take as much as you need! Honey bees are collecting nectar constantly and they only needs around 40 pounds of honey to survive the colder months! But as we are already aware that bees love to work they love to collect nectar and they will almost certainly collect more than 40 pounds worth of honey. Anything over that help yourself. Collect responsibly.

Bees And Beauty

I bet almost everyone reading this has used a product that includes beeswax or honey at some point in their lives. Beeswax has so many skincare benefits! It offers a layer of protection that locks in moisture whilst allowing your skin to breathe.

Many people aren’t aware that beeswax is rich in vitamin A which can support your skin in so many ways, one of which is encouraging cell regeneration and improving your skin's elasticity.

For centuries beeswax has been used as a base and to structure cosmetic products, but with the current situation of the planet people are finding themselves question how these ingredients are sourced. As mentioned earlier, Dr Hauschka are one of the many brands that believe in sustainability and ethical practice when it comes to their brand and products.

Since the 1980’s Dr Hauschka have been beekeeping in their biodynamic medicinal plant garden. With a tradition of protecting bees, they’re allowed to swarm and pollinate over 150 species of plant with some plants being big enough to shelter themselves and their brood from the harsh winter weather or hot summer months.

Dr Hauschka are based in Germany and support Bioland the leading organisation in Germany for organic farming. With their amazing efforts to only used organically sourced, natural and sustainable ingredients they fall within Bioland Standards.

I am not saying stop using honey altogether or become a beekeeper however I do hope this post will inspire you to be more thoughtful of the world around us and all that is in it! For more on this subject, why not check out our blog on Clean Beauty!