Any time you add water to a recipe there is a strong chance of bacteria growing in your product before the item is completely used. Many preservatives advocated by the purists in the natural crowd only last several weeks and are very inconsistent. Though our lotion preservative can be labeled as natural, the most important factor for us is, does it work. And the answer is absolutely "yes." We have tested it under the most rigorous situations and you can be sure you customers will be pleased with the shelf life of our popular lotion formula.