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BEAUTY AND THE BEE

BEAUTY AND THE BEE

Beauty and the Bee

Everybody knows bees as the tiny, industrious creatures that pollinate crops for human survival. Lesser known, perhaps, is how they help us in the beauty department. Our wild honey bees are key to growing the highly concentrated plants that make up our products. In fact, they’re one of the reasons Jurlique has maintained its status as the leader in natural, effective skin care for more than 25 years.

Meet the keeper

Our resident beekeeper, Pamela Cherry, has been tending to the bees on our organic farm in South Australia for more than 12 years. At present, there are seven hives on the farm, four of which descended from a prime swarm from 2017. “They are an integral part of our pure farming process, so we like to encourage their hard work,” says Pamela.

Just as they do for more than half of Australia’s crops, bees are essential in pollinating and propagating the plants and flowers on our Jurlique farm. It’s their round-the-clock toil that promotes floral growth and sustains the vast volumes of concentrated botanicals on our farm, without which our cherished line of plant-based products would not exist.

Once the plants and flowers have fully grown and their nutrients reached peak concentration, we carefully harvest them and extract the properties within. The resulting products are thus poised to deliver your most radiant skin.

The busy work of beekeeping

At the beginning of bee season, which runs from December to February, Pamela’s job is to ensure that the bees are thriving. To open the hives, she needs a protective suit and uses a smoker and hive tool to diligently pry open the boxes.

“Tending to each hive requires opening up and looking for a strong hive with many bees and a queen that is laying eggs well and checking that there is enough stored honey for them to eat. After establishing all is well, I clean the box of any excess honeycomb and ensure that the hive is free of pests and diseases,” she says.

For their survival, bees need plants – whether in the form of flowering trees, shrubs, herbs, flowers or even weeds. “That’s what ensures them a constant supply of pollen and nectar, which is the source of the honey they eat and extract,” says Pamela, adding that something is generally flowering at any point of the year.

Protecting our bees

Bees pollinating our plants forms a huge aspect of our natural product creation. “Being a no-waste and organic farm means we are responsible for caring for the whole farm as a unit. Each part we care for – be it the soil, water or bees – is creating a healthy vitality. The end result flows through to our products,” explains Pamela.

This mentality extends to our pest-control methods too. “Whatever is used, we are very vigilant that no harm can come to our bees and all good bugs, such as lady birds and hover flies,” assures Pamela. “The good bugs help us control nutrient-sapping aphids and thrips on our roses and they play a very important role on the farm.” The result of organic pest-control practices such as this is more concentrated skin care that outperforms anything produced within the confines of a lab.

The benefits of this organic method are undeniable: natural ingredients grown without the use of chemicals are richer in nutrients and antioxidants – and once harnessed by our team, these concentrated botanicals are what deliver the signature Jurlique glow.