Burt’s Bees and Clorox

February 7th, 2008

burtsbees.jpgLast summer I started using Burt’s Bees beeswax lip balm as an alternative to petroleum-based ChapStick.

The natural beeswax lip balm feels much better. Burt’s Bees had a lot of green business practices, including using recycled packaging.

But Burt’s sold to Clorox last year for $913 million. Clorox says it’s going green and wants to help make Burt’s Bees more mainstream.

What do you think? Is Clorox really “going green” or are they just trying to cash in on the green movement? They did just release a line of green cleaning products, Green Works, for the home.

In case you don’t know, Burt actually exists. Before he started the company with a partner he lived in a turkey coop and sold honey out of the back of his pickup truck. I’m not sure if that made the lip balm any better. Maybe not, but this man loves nature. It seemed like a nice little company.

But it got big. And it got sold. Perhaps this means the product will reach more people now. Maybe it means Clorox really is trying to be more responsible (and more profitable). However, if Clorox didn’t buy a company like Burt’s, what would they buy? There are all kinds of horrible options out there.

While some people are now refusing to buy Burt’s, I’m going to wait and see what happens. Besides, I got so much Burt’s Bees for Christmas, I won’t need to buy any for at least a year.

(Image is from www.burtsbees.com)

Filed under Green Choices | Comments (10)

10 Responses to “Burt’s Bees and Clorox”

  1. Jennifer on February 9, 2008 11:06 am

    I had not heard this – what, do I live under a rock? I think it’s lame. Clorox is SO incredibly bad for the environment. Bleach is a horrible product. But, for bought products I do like Burt’s. I especially like their natural bug spray. I don’t know what to do now. Hmmmmm. I’ll have to see what Clorox is really doing to offset their nasty habits. Great post – very news worthy.

  2. Peggy on February 9, 2008 6:45 pm

    I was surprised too, and I’m not sure yet how I feel about it.

    I’m going to wait and see if the products/packaging change.

  3. Merewald on February 10, 2008 2:44 am

    I hadn’t heard this. It’s sad. I’m worried about Burt’s future. I used to really like their products, and I hope Clorox does indeed keep up with their green practices.

  4. badhuman on February 19, 2008 12:30 am

    It seems like all these big companies are trying to buy smaller green companies in order to increase their “green cred” I’m still waiting to see if the benefits of bringing green products into the mainstream outweighs the compromises in quality that a big company is willing to make to make money. Not sure if anyone else knows but Hershey bought out Dagoba Organic Chocolate.

    http://badhuman.wordpress.com

  5. Peggy on February 19, 2008 2:46 am

    Badhuman, I didn’t know about Hershey/Dagoba. I agree with you. These larger companies are trying to increase their “green cred.”

  6. shelley on February 19, 2008 5:11 am

    i recently purchased Burt’s Bees pomegranate lip balm and it was awful. i liked it at first, but it kind of stunk and irritated my throat…(and no i don’t make a habit of eating the stuff) but, previously i bought the ‘honey’ flavor. after awhile i wasn’t impressed with that. i think it all comes down to an ingredient found in the list on the tube…’fragrance’. both were so ‘perfumey’. i don’t think a ‘natural lip balm’ should have fragrance added. it obviously seems synthetic. I’m not a fan of the peppermint either….too strong. almost like it burns my lips. so i am becoming not so much a fan of burt’s…maybe burt should come back!?

  7. Peggy on February 19, 2008 6:24 am

    Hi Shelley. I like the plain beeswax lip balm best. They do sell a plain version.

  8. Can a company be half green? « Light green stairs on March 16, 2008 5:18 am

    […] been thinking about that Green Works post I did at the end of February. And about the Clorox buying Burt’s Bees […]

  9. Thrifty Karen on August 19, 2008 4:40 pm

    I just got some of the Clorox Green Works dishwashing liquid. It is free of phosphates and bleach. According to Clorox it’s made with plant-based and biodegradable ingredients. Anyway, it’s worth checking into.

  10. Peggy on August 19, 2008 4:48 pm

    Hi Karen! Nice too see you here.

    I have tried Green Works, and it’s not bad. Though I do think their agreement with Sierra Club is a little suspect. They pay Sierra Club an undisclosed amount in exchange for using their logo on Green Works.

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