Celebrating a Season of Good Tidings and a Year of Sustainable Progress

In winter, nearly every culture celebrates light in the darkness and at Koster Keunen, we look back to our founder, Johanna Keunen, who made candles from the beeswax harvested from the hives she kept. Johanna recognized almost 175 years ago that proper hive care led to healthy bees and good returns from her hives. This philosophy continues to guide Koster Keunen in our efforts to promote thriving, healthy, and sustainable production of beeswax with our partners around the world.

Our constant commitment has been to establish mutually beneficial relationships that bring eco-friendly products to market. We believe that to do so, we must enhance the lives of those who produce the raw materials. As the BBC StoryWorks feature video “Hive of Industry” shows, it is possible to  strengthen a supply chain by directly improving the quality of life for the producers. Our work to train hive keepers has been some of our most rewarding. Koster Keunen is proud to create products that sustain more than beauty.

BBC StoryWorks feature about beeswax in cosmetics included Koster Keunen’s work in Africa to help train beekeepers on hive health and harvesting techniques.

Keeping supply chains fair and safe creates the opportunity for communities to thrive economically. Adding beehives to croplands raises food production more than 30% by simple pollination. The sales of honey and wax add much-needed income so families can be more secure. We have been delighted to see many of the individuals we work with bring their families and neighbors into the beekeeping community, creating a healthy supply and more robust market for the local honey and beeswax. It is the product of these direct efforts that we provide to you in support of your brand’s commitments to natural, sustainable, and eco-friendly products.

In this season, we wish you peace and joy. We thank our customers for an exciting and prosperous 2022, welcome the opportunity to see you at upcoming trade events, and look forward to continuing to advance the science of wax while elevating those who produce it.