An entrepreneur in Tottenham, Ont., is using beeswax instead of plastic wrap to cover food – a recipe that is gaining momentum online and in stores on at least two continents.
Lacey Alexander, the founder of Labeille Co., said she hopes her innovation will “help people make that first step to living a waste-free life.”
A social worker who helps elderly patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia, Alexander told CTV Barrie that her patients inspired her to try to develop a reusable food wrap. The idea to use beeswax and 100-per-cent cotton instead of plastic came to her in a dream.
“I tried it, and it worked,” she said.
She bought the beeswax from a local business and makes the food wraps and bags at home.
Along the way, she has converted the doubters into customers.
Forty stores in North America and one shop in the United Kingdom stock Alexander’s product.
“We started to sell her product in our store and we just can’t seem to keep it on the shelf,” said Peter Dickey, who runs Dickey Bee Honey Inc. in Cookstown, Ont.
Samantha Thomas, the principal designer at Barrie, Ont.’s Inhabit Interior Design, said that her shop has also sold “quite a bit” of Alexander’s Labeille products since it began stocking them two years ago.
Alexander’s next plan is to market environmentally-friendly reusable twist ties and straws, also made from beeswax.
“It’s really important to do what you can to make the world a better place,” she said.
With a report from CTV News Barrie’s K.C. Colby
