With the popular urge towards buying all things local and locally grown, native and regional, has that trend swept toward the natural cosmetics industry? While one can grow one's own veggies or have CSA (community-supported agriculture) boxes of food delivered to your home, or buy locally-made soaps and lotion at your neighborhood Certified farmer's market or at Whole Foods, I'm talking about something altogether deeper and more radical. What about native and traditional botanicals and scents?
In this case, each microclimate or township could have scents and products that no one else has. Here in southern California, we could create an essential oil of wild sage and chaparral, or pine and manzanita, to be used in natural cosmetics. If we wanted to have a more fluid definition of the word "native" and stick more to "local", we could have a scent that was eucalyptus, sweet grass, and manzanita; or magnolia, loquat, and fennel. Doesn't that sound yummy, and unique? Instant brand power, to be marketable anywhere. This could even start a cottage industry that would create jobs and help low-income communites.
One could even go a step aside from "natural", and somehow bottle the salient fragrances from a town, block, or neighborhood.
While we're at it, let's get back to native foods too! Acorn mush pancakes, anyone?
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Great idea! I've been thinking about this topic at a higher level lately so it really resonated. It doesn't make sense that most of what we eat has to travel really huge distances. It seems like we've passed the point of no return when ti comes to eating and buying things locally. The midwest is no longer the nation's bread basket--CA Central Valley is--because everything has been ripped out and replanted with corn and soy. THere are a lot of people, especially in CA, who make handmade botanical products, like soap, essential oils, bath products, etc, and galvanzing a community of these artisans into a viable commercial entity is a great idea! I'm all for buying and eating (and maybe even wearing) locally produced stuff.
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