Last week I was fortunate enough to win a place on a VIP trip to Peacemarsh, Neal’s Yard Remedies’ eco-factory in Gillingham, Dorset alongside 11 other Independent Consultants. It was a visit I’ve been wanting to make for many years and it exceeded my expectations in every way!
We had a packed itinerary starting with a tour of the factory floor. As you’d expect if you’re familiar with the products, it is a divinely fragrant space! It’s also surprisingly small considering 96% of the company’s products are made and bottled/packaged on site!
However, this is due to everything being produced in relatively small batches so that products are not sitting on the warehouse shelves with the risk of going off before they’re sold and going to waste.
Sustainability is at the heart of everything the company does, and this was truly borne out on this visit, seeing the living walls on the exterior of the buildings, a habitat for birds and insects, the solar panels (even on the shed roof!), hearing how rainwater is collected and used to flush all the toilets on site and so on.
Raw materials that are suitable for composting are added to the compost heaps and the compost used in the factory gardens, all of which are Soil Association certified organic and audited annually. Pollinators and wildlife thrive on the 7-acre site as a result.
But back to the factory tour… Once we were all appropriately dressed in PPE and with hands scrubbed and sanitised, we were shown into the production area. Several products were all at various stages of the production process. Ingredients were being weighed and measured by hand, and all the machinery had a team of support staff keeping a watchful eye, ensuring lids were sealed and labels straight etc.
Bee Lovely Hand Cream was being pumped into cylinders which were then crimped to become the familiar tubes. It was fascinating to see that the bulk product is contained within a recyclable sack and there is a mangle-like device that ensures every last drop is squeezed out to minimise waste.
A vat of Frankincense Facial Wash was almost ready to be bottled and one of the factory staff was gathering the raw materials to start whipping up a batch of Aromatic Foam Bath. On his trolley of ingredients were two large sacks of dried herbs, including a kilogram of dried lavender which he opened as we were gathered around. The smell was incredible!
We learned about the strict cleaning routine that has to take place once one product has been completed before the next can begin and how all the cleaning and sterilising products used have to be approved by the Soil Association and by Cosmos to maintain the relevant certifications.
We also saw the lovely team at work putting together the Mother & Baby Gift Set, assembling the fully recyclable box and inserts, adding the products and finishing with the decorative outer sleeve. We learned that this area will soon become a huge hive of activity once the process of putting together the Christmas gift sets begins!
Nature-Friendly GardensFrom the factory to the gardens, sadly for us, in the pouring rain! Here some of the raw ingredients used in the products are grown – herbs that are used in tinctures, calendula that goes into some of the facial products and so on. Later in the afternoon we saw the tincture lab which is just 100 metres or so from the gardens so plant material is picked fresh and pressed within minutes.
Throughout the gardens there is a “no dig” approach to preserve the integrity of the soil and its nutrients. Waste becomes compost that’s then applied back to the land, some rows of plants such as calendula are allowed to go to seed so these can be collected for future crops – everything is done as sustainably as possible.
Hedgehog houses and dead hedges to attract and house wildlife are crafted from felled trees and branches, and there are absolutely no pesticides used – weeds are controlled through manual labour. The orchard provides fruit for use in the staff restaurant and employees are able to pick some for home use too.
Despite the heavy downpour, it was a beautiful space to spend time in.
After a delicious lunch, we donned our lab coats again and headed into the formulations lab with Fran Johnson, who has been with the company for 20 years and now oversees the whole formulations department. This was the icing on the cake for me as a Clinical Aromatherapist!
Under Fran’s guidance we made our own vegan multi-purpose balm using the same ingredients that form the base of the new Vegan Wild Rose Beauty Balm. We had to weigh out each of the raw ingredients (precision is important but not easy!) in 2 phases: the waxy ingredients in one beaker, the oils in another.
These then went onto a hot plate where they stirred themselves by magic! (Well, actually it’s a magnetic stirrer within the beaker) and once the waxes were melted and all the ingredients combined, it was poured into one of the iconic blue glass jars.
We were then let loose with a selection of essential oils to create our own unique fragrance which was added and mixed into the warm balm before it set. It meant we had a very personal memento to take home.
A Trip to the Tincture Unit
A visit to the tincture lab rounded off the day where we learned a little about Lemon Balm, freshly picked from the gardens and then pressed on site to squeeze all the precious juices out. From picking to bottled tincture takes less than an hour! The “cake” of plant matter that remains after pressing is then composted.
Calendula for use in some of the facial products is also produced here, along with many of the tinctures sold through the Neal’s Yard Remedies shops. It was great to see how short a distance the fresh plant matter has to travel for processing, all in a wheelbarrow rather than transported by van or lorry.
All-in-all it was a fabulous, insightful and inspiring day and an experience well-worth waiting for! It was so good to see that the company really does stand by its principles throughout the whole manufacturing process and is always working to minimise its impact on the planet.
If you’d like to read more about Neal’s Yard Remedies and explore their range of organic, natural, cruelty-free products, please visit my Consultant website or contact me if you’d like to try the products, either in a Holistic Facial or by hosting a skincare workshop or pamper party for you and a few friends.