At The Physic Garden, we believe business should be a driving force for positive change in the World. Everything we do is aimed at improving health and well-being on a personal level, as well as protecting and restoring the environment on a global scale. We do this through a range of principles we use that guide every business choice we make.
Nature has provided us with everything our skin needs. Beautiful, healing herbs and nourishing, vitamin rich oils to moisturise and heal. For thousands of years humans have used their knowledge and connection to nature in herbal remedies, and we wish to keep this connection alive in our products. Many artificial ingredients used in skincare can be toxic when absorbed into the blood stream, and are produced at a detriment to the environment. We want to inspire you to learn more about the amazing healing properties of plants.
Animals hold a dear place in our hearts and we don't believe animals need to be exploited for us to make beautiful, effective skincare. There are so many incredible, nourishing plant-based ingredients, it just isn't necessary. From an environmental perspective, animal agriculture contributes a huge amount of greenhouse gas emissions, uses one third of the World's water and contributes to large amounts of land being deforested.
We believe it is our responsibility to protect and restore natural environments for future generations. We cannot live separately to nature, we need to learn to live hand in hand with her. We established The Physic Garden to actively educate, protect and improve the environment. We do this by using only natural ingredients and do not use any synthetic, environmentally polluting ingredients. We use organic and wildcrafted ingredients wherever possible, supporting growers and communities that are doing right by the land. We also support Trees For the Future, an organisation that helps farmers plant forest gardens, by planting one tree for every order made through our online store.
We have partnered with Trees For The Future to plant a tree for every order you make with us. So far you have helped us plant over 5000 trees! Trees For The Future are currently working with over 3,000 farming families in Sub-Saharan Africa. Their focus is on the implementation of programs providing training, equipment and support for farming families to grow their own forest gardens. Forest gardens help provide families with food, income, empowerment, unity, leadership and education.
Supporting the establishment of forest gardens helps to end hunger and poverty, often the drivers behind deforestation. In addition, the forest garden helps to sequester an average of 62.8 metric tons of carbon per hectare, revitalising soil and enhancing biodiversity.
This beautiful country is our home. Producing everything from scratch locally in Melbourne may cost a little more, but it means we can ensure that our staff working conditions are excellent and we can support our local economy. In addition, it minimises the travel miles the products accumulate in the travels from production to your door.
Animal testing is cruel and in this day and age, completely unnecessary for producing safe, effective skincare. We are proud to have certification from Choose Cruelty-Free Australia, and have never and will never use any ingredients which have been tested on animals. We adore our animal friends and strongly believe we can live happy, healthy lives without harming them.
Further to being eco-friendly, operating sustainably means using practices and materials wisely to ensure we don't deplete the Earth's resources. Our product packaging is primarily glass and aluminium, and we are currently in the process of transitioning to being completely plastic-free. All our 25g/50g Balms and 60g Deodorants are currently in 100% plastic-free packaging, with biodegradable labels and recycled cardboard sleeves. We ship our products using recycled and/or biodegradable materials including cardboard, recycled shredded paper and biodegradable corn-starch packing beans. The electricity we use comes from 100% renewable sources. We implement daily practices to always reduce our footprint by reducing, reusing and recycling everything we can.
We have seen first-hand the devastating effects the palm oil industry has had on forests in Indonesia and Malaysia. It has caused mass habitat loss for hundreds of species including Orangutans, Proboscis Monkeys and Pigmy Elephants. It is truly heart-breaking, and there are so many alternatives to palm oil, we can't support its use. All our products are 100% palm oil free.
We believe you can feel the difference when a product is hand mixed and poured with a great amount of care and love. Making our products in small batches, means we get to carefully monitor the conditions and quality of the herbs right from infusion through to setting in their pots. This human element allows us to retain the plant's unique essence and healing qualities. We also think it's kind of lovely knowing that the product you are using has been made by real person, rather than a big machine.
