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**Statement of**

**John Replogle**

**President and CEO**

**Burt's Bees, Durham, North Carolina**

**Before the**

**Subcommittee on Horticulture and Organic Agriculture**

**Committee on Agriculture**

**U.S. House of Representatives**

[June 26, 2008]{.underline}

Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the
opportunity to testify about the status of research and other activities
related to the health of honeybees and all pollinators. My name is John
Replogle, and I am President and CEO of Burt's Bees, which is
headquartered in Durham, North Carolina. Burt\'s Bees is the leading
Natural Personal Care brand, bringing earth-friendly, natural personal
care products to consumers for more than 20 years. Our mission, simply
put, is 'to make people's lives better everyday, naturally.' We do this
by creating the best natural personal care products with the finest
natural ingredients to help individuals maximize their well-being and
the well-being of the world around them. We operate our business with a
commitment to *The Greater Good* -- care for our products, our planet
and our communities.

**Why Burt's Bees is Involved in Pollinator Health Efforts:**

Honeybees are important to Burt's Bees. Our roots are entangled with
theirs. We share their name. Their image still adorns our logo. And, to
this day, many of our products rely on their instinctive skills. Our
co-founder, Burt Shavitz, was a beekeeper for over 20 years.

Indeed, bees are the foundation of Burt's Bees' business. The health and
welfare of bees are very dear to us. Even though we get beeswax and
honey in a completely bee-friendly way, we know we all can and must do
more. More important than our own product supply, the impact of bees on
our ecosystem is critical -- they are responsible for one-third of the
food we eat. It's another major indicator that demonstrates the
importance of caring for our environment. If we fail to take action,
there could be further negative impact on the fruits and vegetables that
we eat as well as the biodiversity of the plants that we depend on for
many of our products.

Burt's Bees is deeply concerned about the health of honeybees and other
pollinators because of two of our core beliefs: natural ingredients work
in harmony with the body; and we must protect and provide for the
precious resources of our planet. Many of the natural ingredients in our
personal care products are either directly produced by honeybees, such
as beeswax and honey, or are derived from plants pollinated by
honeybees, such as almond oil, sunflower oil, avocado butter and peach
stone. To make certain that all our products meet the highest natural
standards, we carefully craft them using time-tested, proven recipes
with ingredients that are the best nature has to offer: beeswax,
botanical and essential oils, herbs, flowers and minerals. These safe,
effective ingredients have withstood the test of time. And because of
that, we never use any ingredient that isn\'t proven safe and effective.
This fine attention to quality is recognized by our consumers; for the
past two years, college students around the country have recognized us
as one of the *Top 10 Socially Responsible Companies* through the Alloy
U awards.

Burt's Bees has a long-standing commitment to the environment, which is
a central component of our mission. We are committed to leading
innovation in our choices for packaging, using materials that are
biodegradable, recycled and/or recyclable. We strive to operate our
business with constant attention to minimizing our impact, including
reducing our energy and water use and educating and inspiring our
employees to change personal habits. For example, our company grew 26
percent in 2007 and, through the work of our dedicated team, was able to
reduce our energy use by 2 percent. In 2008, the Carolina Recycling
Association gave Burt's Bees an award for the Best Business Recycling
Program, which was developed and led by volunteer employees. This year,
we also led the first annual Planet Earth Celebration in Raleigh, NC,
attended by over 15,000 members of our community.

Burt's Bees got its start back in 1984 in Maine, when Roxanne Quimby and
Burt Shavitz teamed up selling candles and lip balm made from the
beeswax created as a by-product of Burt\'s honey business. At the very
first craft fair, they sold \$200 worth, and by the end of the first
year, sales climbed to \$20,000. As the company grew, they realized the
need to relocate to best position for further growth and brought the
company to North Carolina in 1993. Since then, company growth has been a
testament to individuals living the 'American Dream,' with the company
experiencing double-digit growth year over year, reaching \$350 million
in retail sales in 2007.

**Actions to Support Honeybee Health:**

Burt's Bees has chosen to take a holistic approach to supporting
honeybee health. Colony Collapse Disorder, or CCD, has been the catalyst
for increased research efforts, even though it is one of a myriad of
challenges confronting honeybees, beekeepers, and growers who require
pollination services as a vital stage in crop production. While the
causes for Colony Collapse Disorder are unknown, we do know that forces
such as habitat destruction, misuse of pesticides, invasive species and
global warming create risks to honeybees.

Research is critical to providing the knowledge and science-based
solutions needed to address CCD and a host of other challenges
threatening the health and sustainability of honeybees and other
pollinators. We commend the increasing efforts by the U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA) to conduct and coordinate research on CCD and other
challenges impacting honeybees and other pollinators, such as USDA's CCD
research action plan launched last summer.

We also applaud this Subcommittee, the Agriculture Committee, and the
Congress for enacting a new farm bill that for the first time includes
pollinator-specific research and conservation provisions laying the
groundwork for further action.

Burt's Bees urges the Congress to provide additional funding for
pollinator research and conservation in the Fiscal Year 2009
appropriations. We also urge the research and conservation agencies at
USDA to take maximum advantage of the new pollinator provisions in the
farm bill in implementing their programs.

I believe business, along with government, can collaborate as a powerful
force to positively impact our changing environment. At Burt's Bees, we
feel a responsibility to take action directly, given the gravity of the
situation. After considering options on how best to help, Burt's Bees
joined forces last fall with the Pollinator Partnership. We are
providing funding for research projects through [the Pollinator
Partnership's Honeybee Health Improvement
Project](http://pollinator.org/), which is focusing on four critical
areas:

1.  Breeding stock improvements

2.  Best practices for commercial beekeeping

3.  Effects of pesticides and chemicals

4.  Improving nutritional resources

The Honeybee Health Improvement Project is being managed by the Honeybee
Health Improvement Task Force of the North American Pollinator
Protection Campaign (NAPPC). NAPPC is a tri-national, public-private
sector collaboration facilitated by the Pollinator Partnership. With a
well-respected team of researchers guiding the project, we believe their
work will go a long way in improving honeybee health and sustainability.

Additional information about the Task Force and research projects is
provided in the testimony of the Pollinator Partnership as well as at
[www.pollinator.org/honeybee_health.htm](http://www.pollinator.org/honeybee_health.htm).

As a bee-friendly company, we know the critical role bees play in our
ecosystem. We are proud to support this Task Force and believe the
research projects will yield outcomes that will help improve the health
of bees and indeed benefit all of us who depend upon their industrious
pollination labors.

Burt's Bees has been so pleased with the progress and quality of
existing efforts that we have already committed to a second year in
partnering with the Pollinator Partnership.

**Increasing Public Awareness and Encouraging Consumers to Take
Action:**

Burt's Bees believes that when individual citizens become aware of
environmental challenges and are given information about simple actions
they can take to help, many will be inspired to take action. Individual
actions can collectively make a difference.

Last year Burt's Bees produced a 60-second Public Service Announcement
(PSA) ([http://www.burtsbees.com](http://www.burtsbees.com/)) that
describes the CCD problem and outlines basic actions our consumers can
take to help, including purchasing locally grown organic foods and
planting bee-pollinated flower seeds. Visitors to our website are
encouraged to visit the Pollinator Partnership's website
([http://www.pollinator.org](http://www.pollinator.org/)) for more
information.

The PSA launched last November, generating over 5 million impressions in
its first few weeks. Through the PSA and our website, we distributed
over 50,000 seed packets in just 8 weeks. That's millions of flowers
planted around the country that represent forage for honeybees and other
pollinators. We continue to educate consumers with the PSA this year on
our website and as part of our 2008 Bee-utify Your World Mobile Tour,
which will be visiting 30 cities around the United States. While we know
flower seed packets aren't the cure, we hope they'll help broadcast the
problem and educate consumers about the life-giving role that bees play
in a healthy, balanced food chain.

This year, Burt's Bees is taking another step to increase public
awareness and contribute funding to support pollinator protection
efforts by launching a "Help the Honeybees" Beeswax Lip Balm, with 5
percent of proceeds directed to support the Pollinator Partnership's
Honeybee Health Improvement Project. The lip balm package and supporting
in-store displays publicize the issue, the need to take action and where
to learn more about what can be done to help.

In closing, we at Burt's Bees truly believe that by helping to save the
bees, we save a lot more than the bees. That is why we are motivated to
support pollinator health research to increase public awareness and
encourage individuals to take action.

We appreciate the time, attention and leadership you are devoting to the
health of our pollinating partners.