Vegan Sunscreen: To Bee or Not to Bee
New Vegan Sunscreen Launching summer 2022
We have had soooo many requests for a vegan sunscreen that we looked into and decided to use candellila wax in our new and improved formula as a vegan alternative to beeswax!
Candelilla Cera is a wax produced from the Candellila tree. Ethique is a leader in sustainability and they use candellila in their lipsticks. If it passes the Brianne West sustainable ingredient checklist then we are happy using it in our products too!
Are all Seasick Sunscreens Vegan?
Our Original Seasick Sunscreen formula is made with raw NZ beeswax, making it smell delicious and it’s the wax that gives our sunscreen a beautiful golden tint. One of the pros of using NZ raw beeswax is that using an NZ made product supports our local economy. However, while many cruelty-free certificates permit the use of beeswax, the inclusion of it in our sunscreen means people seeking strictly vegan products can’t use our original sunscreen. We want as many people as possible using our mineral sunscreen so that’s why we have created a new vegan formula.
Fun fact: We have 28 species of native bees in New Zealand. Native bees do not have hives or produce honey like honeybees. They live in nests in the ground, under bare, undisturbed soils. They play an especially important role in many of our ecosystems because they are among the most critical and effective pollinators of native plants, including mānuka, kānuka and pohutukawa.
The Difference between Candilla Wax and Raw Beeswax
| Raw Beeswax | Candellila Wax | |
| Suitable for skincare | Yes - see our original sunscreen | Yes - see our new vegan sunscreen |
| Suitable for vegans | No | Yes |
| Melting point | 62-64 °C | 68.5-72.5 °C |
| Fragrance | Light honey scent | No |
| Humectant (moisturising) | Yes – superior | Yes |
| Colour | golden | white/cream |
| Hypoallergenic | Avoid if allergic to pollen/honey | Yes |
Will you be making both formulas from now on? I have loved using the original formula, and look forward to trying the new one.
Yahooo! Exciting times, can’t wait to see the new vegan sunscreen hit the world for summer this year. My girls have been loving getting into the habit of using the original Seasick Sunscreen daily, and they’re definitely getting the idea that a little goes a long way (which is good practice for summer).
Great news, I will look forward to trying it