Until now, my beeswax has been white beeswax, certified organic and imported. It comes from a specialist supplier and, depending on the batch, that supplier is located in Germany or East Africa. I can tell you the wax is certified organic by the Soil Association but I can’t tell you where the bees are flying or where the hives are located.
That's the bit that has been nagging at me over the last two years. Recently, a new option has opened up. A candle made in Somerset using beeswax from a beekeeper a few villages along from where the candles are made. I could tell you his name and I could easily go and see the hives for myself. If you asked me a difficult question about the wax, I could go and ask the man himself, in-person.
So when does that become better than a certified organic beeswax from Germany?
Organic certification means the wax has passed thorough inspection and adheres to strict organic standards set by the Soil Association. With a Somerset beekeeper, it's me vouching for him, which means I owe you a great deal more evidence. I think it tips in favour of local Somerset beeswax when I can name the beekeeper and the place, when I know how the hives are managed and what they're treated with, when I've watched the wax being made, and when the candle burns and smells as well as it did (if not better than!) before. If I can't do all of that, the imported organic wax stays.
There would be a visible change, too. I'd be moving from white beeswax to yellow. White beeswax has been gently refined to lighten it, and it has a neutral appearance. Yellow beeswax comes straight from the hive and is ready for use after filtration and separation to remove elements leftover from the hive. It is full of natural propolis and pollen, giving it that characteristic golden colour. It smells of the local honey, and the colour shifts a little between hives and seasons. Your candle would look darker and it wouldn’t be identical every time. But there’s something I love about the idea of working with the rhythm of nature and celebrating one of its rawest, most beautiful products.
The organic imported wax comes fully cleaned and in easy-to-use pellets. For me, working with the base raw material feels like a privilege and a return to the true essence of the craft of the chandler - something I have always been keen for Babel to embrace.
There are things I can't claim yet, however. This British beeswax isn't organic. I also haven't measured whether it's better for the environment, so I won't call it sustainable. A shorter journey probably helps, but probably isn't enough proof.
What I can promise is that I could tell you the exact locations where each batch comes from, what I know about how it was produced, and when it was harvested. That's what I mean by transparency: you shouldn't have to take my word for anything. It would also allow me to support local, British beekeeping, which feels like a natural next step for Babel. Let me know what you think, I’d be very keen to hear your thoughts.
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