Early Snow

After a beautiful 70 degree day yesterday, we woke up to snow this morning and so far its about 3 inches. We knew it was coming of course; modern meteorology has a way of knowing these things.

We spent the weekend preparing by gathering all of the squash we were growing. We picked about 12 pumpkins, 30 butternut squash and 10 spaghetti squash. I picked as many calendula flowers as I could. Because this is one thing we really use a good deal of in our skin care line, I covered as much as I could with plastic. The temperature tonight is predicted to be 21 degrees, maybe too low for plastic but I can always hope.

As I worked I watched the butterflies flitting about wondering if they knew of the upcoming frost and what they will do. We've got swarms of Painted Lady butterflies migrating though right now. The local news said that some will flee and some will die. Are they getting their last meal now? How sad.

We spent the morning today outside with brooms and poles trying to hit snow off the the tree branches still fully leafed out. We don't want the branches to break from the weight of the snow. I doubt we'll see colors this year as the frost tonight will probably cause them all to loose their leaves. The coming of winter is always bittersweet. I look forward to the lessened workload without the farming, however, I also miss the warm days and seeing the plants grow. This year it is sudden and I'm sure we will still have plenty of warm fall days. I'll enjoy the lessened work load, but look forward to next summer  and seeing and smelling the lavender.

Butterflies in the Garden

Gardens are a lovely place to enjoy birds, bees and butterflies. Do you want to attract  more butterflies to your garden? Besides being beautiful to watch, butterflies also pollinate our gardens.

Butterflies eat liquids that include the juice from fruit and the nectar of flowers. You can probably attract some by leaving out pieces of cut fruit for them to dine on. Butterflies eat, or rather drink through their proboscis.  Flowers that butterflies love include lemon balm, lavender, fennel, anise hyssop, bee balm, catnip and yarrow. These are all herbs that we grow on our Colorado Aromatics farm.

proboscis

proboscis

proboscis

Be sure to feed the larvae, or caterpillars too. This early stage eats only leaves and includes many vegetable plants unfortunately, but also clover, fennel, hollyhock, hops, lilac and mallow.

Want a butterfly to land on you? They enjoy the salt in sweat, so exercise a little first to increase the likelihood of one landing on you. Butterflies are very active during the day looking for food. At night, they tend to sleep on the underside of leaves or in small crevices between rocks.You can also build them a house that has narrow openings where they can hide.

A butterfly has 4 stages to its life cycle. The egg,  caterpillar (or larva), chrysalis (or pupa) which overwinters on a plant, and the butterfly. The lifespan of a butterfly is only 2-4 weeks, so enjoy them while they are around.  There are 28,000 different types of butterfly species worldwide, find out about species that are common near you.

Alternatives to Microbeads

Over the past few years tiny beads made from plastic, called microbeads, have found their way as an ingredient in some cosmetic products intended for exfoliating the skin. Exfoliating removes the outer, dead layer of skin.  Why these plastics ever became a staple for some companies has been a mystery to me in a day and age when many of us are so conscious of plastic being a source of pollution in waterways. Thankfully, President Obama recently signed a bill to ban these ingredients in cosmetics, the Microbead-free WatersAct of 2015 HR 1321, after unanimous approval by the U.S. House of Representatives. 

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These plastic beads are not biodegradable and when they go down the drain they end up in aquatic habitats and make up a large part of the pollution in lakes.  Their small size makes it possible for fish to eat them thinking that they are food.

The ban takes effect January 1, 2018 so companies currently using these beads have time to reformulate their products.  Products that use microbeads include body and face scrubs meant for exfoliation. Brands include Clinique, Rite Aid, Kiehl's, Victoria's Secret, Bath and Body Works, Aveeno, Estee Lauder, and even Crest Toothpaste.

There are many options in the formulators tool kit, however, for exfoliation and I've always questioned why these plastic microbeads became so popular. They have no real benefits over other materials used for exfoliation.

What are some options for exfoliation?

Salt is one of the best exfoliants for the body and it is easy to find salt scrubs to use on the skin while taking a shower. You can find them in these botanical salt scrubs.  Just rub them on and rinse off for a nice silky feel. Sea salt is rich in other minerals (besides just sodium and chloride) including magnesium which can help with skin hydration. Salt is said to be good at flushing toxins from the skin and is particularly good for acne.  I recently came across this quote that I adore by author Isak Dinesen (Karen Blixen);

 " The cure for anything is salt water: sweat, tears or the sea."

Salt can be irritating on broken or sensitive skin. That is why we use sugar as an exfoliant for hands and feet, although salt is perfect there as well.

Sometimes salt can be a little too course for the face so there are other options. Fruit acids also known as alpha hydroxy acids are often incorporated into exfoliants used for the face.  Alpha hydroxy acids include malic acid, lactic acid, and glycolic acid. You can find them in Starbright Brightening Mask. Beta hydroxy acids are also used for exfoliation.

Jojoba beads are small wax beads made from jojoba. They are similar to microbeads in that they are small, round and smooth so good for a mild exfoliation. However, unlike microbeads, they are not plastic and so are completely biodegradable and safe for the environment. They do melt though if they get too hot. You can find them in Meadow Mist Facial Cleanser.

Clay is a good staple for exfoliation and can be found in many forms including kaolin clay, bentonite clay, rhassoul clay, green clay and black clay - all with different properties. Try this herbal clay mask.

These are just a few exfoliants that we tend to use. But there are also a host of others you can choose from that include fruit seeds such as blueberry and strawberry seeds. Ground herbs in general are good exfoliators and we use a lot of that in our soaps. But many people will use ground walnut shell powder and ground bamboos. You can even grind almonds at home to use as a nice, mild facial exfoliator. 

It is important to do a gentle exfoliation both on the face and the body a few times a week, as removing the dead skin cell build up helps your skin care products absorb better so they can do their job.

What exfoliants do you like to use?

Healing Herbs, Tina Sams

Healing Herbs, A Beginner's Guide to Identifying Foraging, and Using Medicinal Plants
Tina Sams
Fair Winds Press, 2015

Healing Herbs, Tina Sams

Tina Sams is a modern day Village Herbalist with a vast knowledge of herbs found in gardens, field and forest.  She is a teacher, mentor, and someone good at bringing people together to share information and educate others.  Many of her projects, such as The Essential Herbal Magazine, are collaborations that she encourages among herbalists as is Healing Herbs where you will find many contributions from other herbalists.

After explaining the various methods of using herbs, Tina has broken this book up into 20 different herbs; 20 different herbs that everyone should know.

For each herb Tina includes background information on the herbs, medicinal benefits and recipes for food, medicine, skin care and/or crafts. The book makes herbs easily approachable with its casual style and is great for both the beginner and experienced herbalist. A great one to keep close for reference.

You can get yours here.

Great Plains Lavender Growers Group

I don’t get to go on many road trips so I was excited to take a trip this weekend with my husband to Kansas to visit with other Lavender growers. I’m a founding member of the United States Lavender Growers Association (USLGA) and we’ve talked about forming ‘regional groups’ or ‘branches’ so growers can get some mentoring and advice from other growers geographically close to them. Hence, the USLGA Great Plains Lavender Growers Group was put together and met for the second time this weekend.

We met at Washington Creek Lavender, the farm of Jack and Kathy Wilson just south of Lawrence for an informal gathering and discussions on a variety of lavender related topics. Their farm is nestled in a beautiful hilly area of Kansas.  They put a good amount of space between their rows, something we may do on future plantings.

While driving there and back, my husband and I also stopped at two other farms; Morford Lavender Farm (Jim and Wanda Morford) in Kanopolis and Prairie Lavender Farm (Mike and Diane Neustrom) near Bennington.

Two farms represented Colorado; Trudy and Bob Perry from Heritage Lavender in Berthoud and myself, from Colorado Aromatics Herb Farm in Longmont. There were also people who came from Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska. 

Lavender growers are very willing to help each other and grow the industry together. Coming from very diverse backgrounds everyone brings something unique to the table. With such different problem solving skills get-togethers are lively and informative. We talked about how we each grow lavender, essential oils, distilling, varieties, agritourism, niches and more.

One fun thing we mentioned was having an I-70 lavender tour. How far would you travel to see various lavender farms?

Maybe next year we will host a lavender gathering at our farm.

Touring Celestial Seasonings

Touring Celestial Seasonings is a great thing to do if in the Boulder, Colorado area. This herbal tea company has been around since the 1970's and I have been drinking their teas almost since their inception. I've taken out of town visitors their several times and when our Rocky Mountain Unit of the Herb Society of America decided to have our annual tea party there last week, I jumped at the chance to do another tour.

Our Herb Society Unit planted the initial herb garden at Celestial Seasonings sometime in the 1990's, but none of us could come up with an exact year. When we toured it was all under snow so we didn't get a chance to see how its held up.

Our tour guide had been with the company for over 30 years so we got to relive a lot of the history of the company. Remember Mo's 36, which later became Mo's 24? I remember buying that at the local health food coop. This initial tea blend was made from herbs gathered by founders Mo Siegel, John Hay, Peggy Clute, and Lucinda Ziesings in the Rocky Mountain area around Boulder. Apparently, no one thought it tasted good and they dropped that initial tea blend.

Their first tea blend that became quite popular was Sleepy Time and the beautiful artwork of the Sleepy Time Bear certainly helped. Celestial Seasonings made herbal teas mainstream and when they were bought by Kraft they were sold in grocery stores instead of just health food stores. Now of course, Hain Celestial owns the tea company. They have 87 different blends now. The Morning Thunder was my favorite in college for late night study groups, now I like the Zingers.

I'm of course concerned that most of their herbs are purchased overseas, in face from 35 different countries, but apparently alfalfa, orange peel, and mint do come from the US. We need to have more large herbs farms in the US to support our businesses.

Here is some of the artwork from the packages that they display in the lobby. Part of their values are 'Beauty and Truth' which makes its way over to the beautiful and original artwork on all the packages.

I am always mesmerized by the robotic equipment that folds the boxes and liners, and stuffs them etc. Another robotic arm stacks boxes on a pallet for shipping. But my favorite part of the Celestial Seasonings tour is the mint room. Yes, an entire room of bags of peppermint. A few minutes standing in there smelling that menthol and I feel like a new person, great for the sinuses too.

You can learn about taking a tour here. Have you been on their tour?

The Importance of Farms

Farms are important for many reasons including preserving open space around a city, providing wildlife habitats, as well as the crops they produce. Most people are well aware that their food comes from a farm in the form of vegetables and meat. But are you aware of the other, non-food crops that come from a farm? Throughout time people have always had a rich relationship with plants and plants that were particularly useful then became cultivated. The study of this relationship is often called Economic Botany. 

Plants produce fiber, medicines (both traditional and modern), spices, herbs, perfumes, vegetable oils, waxes, latex, resins, poisons, psychoactive drugs, and alcoholic beverages.

Smaller farms might be especially important because they are more likely to have biodiversity on the farm than large corporate farms that are interested in a single crop.

Lets look for instance at some of the uses of plants that are grown on a farm.

Arts and crafts. Many plants can be used for arts and crafts. Various types of grasses have been used for making baskets, mats, and hats. People are even using pine needles and lavender stems to make baskets. One of my favorite crafts is the lavender wand.

Medicine. Herbs are important medicines used throughout the world. Some of the top medicinal herbs that can be grown in Colorado are Echinacea, Mint and Chamomile. 

Modern medicine has obtained many of their drugs from plants too. Some of these pharmaceutical crops include Yew grown for Paclitaxel, Camptotheca grown for camptothecin, and Galanthus woronowii grown for Galantamine (an Alzheimers drug). The active ingredients from these plants are extracted after harvest for preparation of the therapeutic substances . GlaxoSmithKline makes digoxin from foxglove that is grown in the Netherlands. http://pubs.acs.org/cen/coverstory/83/8325/8325digoxin.html

Perfume. Scent is one of the most delightful things about herbs and this property also makes them important in sensory gardens. The most common way of obtaining scent or perfume from plants is by distillation to produce an essential oil. However, there are other ways that scent is extracted as well. Common plants used for perfume are lavender and rose. On our farm we distill aromatic herbs to obtain the aromatic water. We routinely distill lavender, rose, tulsi, cucumber, lemon balm, clary sage and mint.

Fiber. Fiber crops can be used for clothing, basketry or building materials. Common crops used for clothing are hemp, agave, cotton, and linen. Animal hairs are also common fibers used such as wool from sheep and mohair from angora goats.

Flavor. Culinary herbs provide the bulk of plants grown for flavor. Some of my favorites are Basil used in pesto, garlic used in a variety of dishes and sage.

Cosmetics and Beauty. This is the area that I am most familiar with since I grow herbs to use in Colorado Aromatics Skin Care. Herbs provide an abundant amount of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory agents; far more than what you could add to a product from other sources. Perhaps one of the most important herbs used in skin care is calendula, but the number is limitless due to the variety of benefits they provide. Growing these herbs allows us to produce a unique, highly functional, farm to skin brand and to be members of our local farmers market.

Fatty Oils that can be used for cooking and more including cosmetics. In Colorado sunflowers are grown for this purpose although most are used for the production of energy.

Alcohol. The most obvious plants grown for alcohol would be grapes for wine, barley for beer and other grains for distilled spirits. But many other herbs are grown for flavoring alcoholic beverages too. For instance, juniper for flavoring gin. Other herbs used in alcohol are coriander, anise, cardamom and licorice. At Colorado Aromatics, we grow lemon balm for flavoring Trinity Absinthe. 

The Society for Economic Botany is a professional society who's members study the relationship between plants and people. You can find them here.

http://www.econbot.org/

Easy Herb Drying

This time of year I start to think about spring and what I need to do to get ready for the rush of farming. I remember not having enough space in my herb hut where I dry my herbs. I have a vinyl covered garage building where I dry herbs and inside I have shelves and tables to hold baskets and to lay out herbs. In our dry climate it usually doesn't take long for the herbs to dry so they rotate through the herb hut pretty quickly. But I still need more SPACE.

Two years ago my husband picked up some bread racks at the ReStore because he thought I might find a use for them. Well, I realized that they make very good herb drying racks; I just don't have enough of these plastic bread trays to fully utilize the racks.

So I asked my husband to make some trays that would fit and he came up with these. They are made from standard molding that is 3 feet long, cut and nailed together with a new nail gun he recently got. On the bottom he stapled down some screen material. The sides of these are about 2 inches high and they fit on the bread racks nicely.The screening on the bottom will let enough air circulate so the herbs can dry.

The above picture is our prototype which seems pretty sturdy and easy to handle. Now he can make a lot of them quickly.  This almost makes me excited about cleaning out the herb hut to get it ready for spring/summer!

We Love Herbs

We are trying hard to extend the growing season for some of our herbs. Although it doesn't look like it's working well, we are eternal optimists. We are passionate about using herbs in our skin care products.

Besides supporting small farms why do we use herbs in cosmetics?

1. We believe using herbs contributes to a healthier more sustainable lifestyle.

2. Herbs are rich in a variety of nutrients such as carotenoids that provide skin benefits.

3. Herbs are rich in antioxidants that help repair skin damage. 

Some of our favorites are calendula, lemon balm, lavender, raspberry leaf, chamomile and hops.

We are Certified!

I'm happy to announce that our farm has just become Certified Naturally Grown (CNG). I am excited about this program and you can read more about here http://www.naturallygrown.org/.  Its standards are similar to the USDA's Certified Organic program in that it does not allow synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, fungicides or GMO seeds. It differs in that it is a small, private and grass roots organization not associated with the government and encourages collaboration, transparency and community involvement.

I've never been quite comfortable with the Certified Organic Program; its a government sponsored program that seems more tailored towards the larger sometimes corporate farms involved in monocropping. Not to mention their ownership of the word 'organic'. USDA COP farm inspectors are forbidden to make suggestions or help the farmers in any way while CNP farm inspectors are peers and volunteers that are encouraged to share information.  I look forward to my first farm inspection this spring by one of my peers who has volunteered to do so and I expect it to be a learning process. I've asked Darrell Cook of Ginger Cat Farm to do my inspection. CNP relies on volunteers like this which encourages community involvement and collaborations.

At Colorado Aromatics Herb Farm I grow things the way my Mother taught me and she learned from her Mother, the traditional way, long before there even were synthetic fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides. I do have the benefit of having herbs and lavender as my main crop which are probably easier to grow than vegetable crops. But we fertilize our fields in the winter using manure produced by our horses, goats and chickens. Although we are still learning how to best control weeks; we pick by hand until our backs ache, we use weed cloth and we hoe (we also accept volunteers). We try to reduce the amount of gasoline we use on the farm too by doing most of the work by hand rather than by tractor (we don't own a tractor). Because of the way we farm, beneficial insects such as bees, ladybugs and praying mantis abound. When we do get damaging insects such as aphids our first choice is to take care of them with the garden hose.

I think growing my herbs with the Certified Naturally Grown seal partners well with the extracts I make from them for natural cosmetics. I'll soon be adding pictures and information to our profile at CNG http://www.naturallygrown.org/farms/3421.

Lavender Coffee

I'm always game to try an interesting herb recipe, especially when it involves lavender. I've

heard talk recently of lavender coffee and even heard there's a coffee shop nearby that makes a lavender mocha, although I've not been there yet. So I wanted to give lavender coffee a try. Since I always have milk in my coffee I went about making my lavender coffee by first infusing milk. I put about a cup of milk in a pan with about a teaspoon of lavender buds and heated that briefly while I made a cup of coffee. For the coffee I used an espresso roast which is my favorite; I made this one extra strong to allow for a good amount of milk. When the coffee was finished I strained the lavender buds from the milk and whisked it a little to froth. I poured the milk into the coffee and added a small amount of cinnamon to the top. Because lavender has a very astringent taste I am always careful not to use too much in a recipe. This came out quite delicious though without the astringency common to lavender. I could easily have used more but it was good with this amount.

Later I will infuse lavender in milk to make some hot chocolate. I know that will be good!

If you are interested in using lavender in drinks here are some other ideas you may have heard of:

Lavender Lemonade

Lavender Earl Grey Tea

Lavender Martini (don't infuse this too long as it will get bitter)

Lavender also goes well with many fruit drinks including peach and raspberry. 

I've never had a lavender pale ale  but I think the flavor of lavender would add a nice floral touch to some good hops. I'd love to try on.

Do you have a favorite lavender drink?

Anti-Inflammatory Herbs

Feverfew

Borage

Our skin experiences damage both from within and from environmental factors which lead to inflammation. the pathways involved in this inflammation may be involved in promoting the signs of aging in skin. Antiaging formulas for the skin should therefor contain ingredients that act as anti-inflammatory agents. Following are some herbs that have anti-inflammatory activities that can be used in skin care products.

Antiinflammatory Herbs Used in Skin Care

Aloe vera (Aloe Barbadensis)
Borage (Borago officinalis)
Calendula (Calendula officinalis)
Chamomile (Matricaria recutita and Chamaelelum nobile)
Comfrey (Symphytum officinale)
Cornflower (Centaurea cyanus)
Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare)
Feverfew  (Chrysanthemum parthenium)
Frankincense (Boswellin)
Ginger (Zingiber officinale)
Green Tea (Camellia sinensis)
Holy Basil (Ocimum tenuiflorum)
Hops (Humulus lupulus)
Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia)
Licorice root (Glycyrrhiza Glabra)
Mint (Mentha spp.)
Pansy (Viola tricolor)
Plantain (Plantago lanceolata)
Red clover (Trifolium pratense)
Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis)
Sage (Salvia officinalis)
Turmeric (Curcuma longa)
White Willow (Salix alba)
Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)

Safe Cosmetics Act of 2011

After spending a good several hours reading the new Safe Cosmetics Act of 2011 I see that the changes in this bill compared to 2010 are minimal. Here is my initial take on the bill which may or may not change depending on if some points get clarified or others appear as I reread it.

Again this bill includes in the definition of an ingredient any contaminants that are present at levels above technically feasible detection limits. As we all know, detection limits now are quite minute so any type of contaminant would be included here. This includes contaminants from the container as well. But what contaminants are they referring to here and why don’t they specify?

Ingredient safety can fall under just two categories: ‘Safe Without Limits’ and ‘Prohibited and Restricted’ This is misleading to both the consumer and the manufacturer since there is no such thing as a substance that is safe without limits. Even water can be lethal under certain conditions. It mentions ‘considerations’ in determining toxicity such as “is found to be present in the body through biomonitoring”. Does this mean that something is toxic if found in the body? I’m not sure I understand this. Many things are found in the body through biomonitoring including water. A second consideration is an ingredient that is suspected immunological toxicant. Is this another way of saying “allergen”? If so, does this mean that a substance that causes allergies will be prohibited? Anything can be an allergen and some common allergens are shea butter, almond butter, soy oil, milk, etc. Many herbs are also allergens. All in all, the bill has very poor definitions of toxicity and leaves most of it up to the FDA to determine in one year’s time! Wow, where is the FDA going to find those resources?

Labels must list ingredients in decreasing order of concentration. This is already required by the FDA so is redundant here. Contaminants however must also be listed. Knowing that water alone can contain any number of contaminants this immediately causes problems. Is testing of all our ingredients for contamination required?? Besides water, vegetable oils will contain contaminants, herbs grown in the backyard could contain contaminants. However, it does allow the FDA to determine such possible contaminants within one year’s time as well as determine requirements for testing and detection limits. If it is determined that cosmetic manufacturers are required to test for various contaminants this would add considerably to the cost of cosmetics. I am glad to see that ingredient lists are required on websites that sell cosmetics.

Some of the most dangerous contaminants of cosmetics are fungus and bacteria that can grow on nutrients in the product. Unfortunately, no specific mention of this is made. This is one area where consumers have suffered because of improperly made and improperly preserved products – in fact, this is the only area of documented harm to consumers from cosmetics.

Again, toxic is defined as a 1 in a million risk for adverse health effects. Toxic effects include allergic reactions and I challenge anyone to find any ingredient natural or synthetic that does not cause an allergic reaction in one in a million people.

Many things are not clear for instance “the safety standard results in exposure to the amount or concentration of an ingredient or cosmetic that is shown to produce no adverse health effects, incorporating a margin of safety of at least 1,000 and considering the impact of cumulative exposure from all sources (including environmental sources).” Does anyone know what this means and if so can you tell me? Does it mean 1000^th of the determined toxic dose? If so, who determines this dose?

The bill goes on to require that the FDA issue guidance prescribing Good Manufacturing Practices. This is something that again, the FDA already has issued and so is redundant.

The bill requires manufacturers of cosmetics and ingredients to submit information including toxicological properties of each such ingredient or cosmetic. I’m not sure if this means the manufacturer who is buying ingredients is required to submit data to the FDA on those ingredients or not. Since the source of this data would probably be from the ingredient manufacturer this seems redundant. When this ingredient is purchased at the grocery store such as some small manufacturers do with vegetable oils, where is the toxicological data and contaminant data and how is this reported as an ingredient source? When the ingredient is an herb from the small manufacturer’s back yard where will this toxicological information come from or will this no longer be possible? I am still very concerned about the future of using natural ingredients in cosmetics with this bill. There are many herbs, oils, and natural extracts that have quite a data gap in toxicological studies.

I find it interesting that the ‘authoritative source’ of toxicology information includes the (A) Environmental Protection Agency,

(B) the International Agency for Research on Cancer,

(C) the National Toxicology Program,

(D) the California Environmental Protection Agency and

(E) any other authoritative international, Federal, and State Entity, as determined by the Secretary.

I’m not sure what E means but I know there are pseudo science activists groups who may pose as an authority so that they can determine law. I would rather be sure toxicity was determined by peer reviewed scientific literature.

Some of the considerations in the bill for toxicity are also quite vague, for instance; if it is found in the body through biomonitoring. Does this imply that if something is found in the body it is toxic? I use water in my cosmetic formulas and I know it is found in the body. Another consideration is known or suspected immunological toxicant. Is an immunological toxicant the same thing as an allergen? Anyone can be allergic to anything but some of the more common allergens are shea butter, almond oil, soy oil, wheat and herbs. Will these ingredients be prohibited?

There is no definition of an ingredient manufacture. Many small companies use ingredients from their backyard; herbs and other botanicals. Are these companies required to have these ingredients tested to find what contaminants might be present and in what levels?

The thing that concerns me the most here though is that microbusinesses (those with sales less than $2 million) are not required to register with the FDA. Although I am glad to see that the bill waives a costly registration fee for these small companies (of which I am one) I don’t understand the lack of even registering with the FDA. Registration allows a link with the FDA so that companies can get timely information regarding ingredients and toxicity but just as important is that it allows consumers a way to report adverse effects that may occur due to cosmetic usage. By not registering, these microbusinesses are out of the communications link with the FDA. FDA will have no knowledge of the microbusiness’s existence, their activities, the products they manufacture or the functions and toxicities of those cosmetics. In the initial bill of 2010 small businesses rallied hard to be exempt from paying high registration and testing fees. However, we did not rally against registration.

If small companies are exempt from registering and having communication with the FDA are they exempt from submitting information on toxicological properties of ingredients and cosmetic product; exempt from “cease distribution” orders due to misbranding; exempt from use that causes serious adverse health effects; exempt from using contaminants and testing for these contaminants, exempt from good manufacturing practices issued by the FDA, etc? Having that link to the FDA could be valuable for a small business to learn the laws and requirements necessary especially when it comes to testing. This concerns me because many small cosmetics business owners just starting out do not have the knowledge base to draw from to know how to make safe cosmetics and have the potential to put something out there that is less than safe. And consumers should have a way to report possible adverse effects. It was the costs involved in the first version of this bill that had small business owners concerned, not having to register and be held accountable for their actions.

Should small businesses be just as responsible for their actions? Registration is important to keep open communication with the FDA.

Overall it is still a case of an activist group who knows nothing about the cosmetics business trying to make laws about things they do not understand. The bottom line still is that this bill will not make cosmetics safer.

Award Winning Herbs at the Fair

At the coaxing of a fellow farmer I went ahead and entered my herbs in the county fair this year for the first time. I am sure glad I did as I came away with 15 ribbons (including reserve champion for chocolate mint) and my husband and son also took away a few. Now I can tell my customers that my herbs are 'award winning herbs'!
I have always loved fairs and their historic importance. They celebrate agriculture and are a chance for people to come together to show their wares. Some county fairs are more extensive than others and the Boulder County Fair is just the right size with a small midway, several food vendors (including the 4H ice cream bar)and the typical animal, plant and project displays.

Although I take good care of my herbs all summer, the only special thing I did for the fair was to give them a good watering and trimming a week before the fair. There are categories for most culinary types of herbs as well as several 'other' classes. Requirements are to have 6 stems of each in a glass jar. Judging is based on condition, presentation, aroma and taste when appropriate. I realized after the fact that the Herb Society of America of which I am a member publishes a guide to showing/judging herbs. You can find that here.
Besides entering herbs in the fair, we also purchased a few chickens after the 4H judging. They seem to be settling in just fine.
Since I support agriculture county fairs are very important to me. Colorado has some good ones too including Adams County, Larimer County, and Elbert County (besides Boulder County). Jefferson county has more of a 4H day than a fair, but we were involved in that some when we lived in Lakewood. I hope that county fairs continue to do well in our country. If you have one in your county you can support it both by attending and by entering.