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Soap & Soul is The Quintessential Dr. Bronner’s Book

For those of us who are fans of Dr. Bronner’s, the company’s products have a constant presence in our households, and we use them to clean our bodies and physical surroundings on a daily basis.

While this is unquestionably a critical component of our lives and imperative to maintain good health, cleaning transcends removing whatever is on our skin, on our clothes or on our kitchen countertops. It also affects our emotional well-being and directly impacts how we show up in the world.

And this is precisely why Lisa Bronner’s Soap & Soul: A Practical Guide to Minding Your Home, Your Body and Your Spirit with Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps spoke to me so much, as it squarely touches on the importance of cleaning both the tangible and intangible — an essential formula for a meaningful life.

Lisa Bronner’s background and lineage provide real credibility when it comes discussing this subject, and she does it with empathy and eloquence.

Her grandfather, Emanuel, founded the company in 1948, and her two brothers David and Michael, cosmic engagement officer (CEO) and president, respectively, now run Dr. Bronner’s, alongside her mother Trudy (chief financial officer) and her husband Michael Milam (chief operations officer.) Aside from having a serious soap pedigree, Lisa’s family company is rooted in the culture of elevating the spirit of those around them, which is demonstrated by Dr. Bronner’s donating approximately 5% of yearly revenue to environmental, organic and social causes, in addition to officers’ salaries being capped at 5x the lowest-paid fully-vested position.

Sharing her expertise of the company’s soap products began on a formal basis in 2008, when Lisa’s brother, Michael, asked her to help answer email inquiries from customers. Two years later, she launched her Going Green with Lisa Bronner blog, where she expanded this knowledge base to also include a wide range of eco-friendly lifestyle topics. And now with the new book, it is yet another forum to share this information.

“There are so many parallels with cleaning the physical and emotional space, and I wanted the title of the book to encompass both of these realms,” she said.

“My grandfather used to tell the story of someone who called him with real distress. He told this person to ‘clean your house and call me back.’ He was right. If our problem is a spirit that is burdened, taking control of something that you can see is very empowering. There is value to physical engagement with our environment, and it is very easy not to make the connection.”

While Lisa fully acknowledges that such a philosophy is hardly novel, there is something powerful about being reminded of this message, especially given the context.

Soap & Soul is about as perfect of a book for this iconic brand that I can imagine, primarily because it is a meditation on both soap and life, and the biggest compliment that I can give Soap & Soul is that I still think about it often, even though I read it weeks ago.

(At Natural Products Expo East 2023 with Lisa and David.)

A message from Tradin Organic

Why Tradin Organic is Prioritizing Regenerative Organic Farming

At Tradin Organic, we believe that regenerative organic farming is key to growing healthy and nutritious food ingredients — for now and for future generations.

And in Sierra Leone, we have grown the world’s first Regenerative Organic Certified cacao.

Learn more.

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Organic Insider

Company Stories

Upset Over Policy Differences and that Major GMO/Chemical Companies are Members of the Organic Trade Association, Nature’s Path Quits the Organization as a Protest to Save Organic

* Iconic cereal brand Nature’s Path has quit the Organic Trade Association (OTA) as a protest to save organic.

* The company says the OTA “is not working in step with organic advocates to protect and strengthen the original principles of the organic movement” and is not acting with sincerity when it comes to hydroponics, the most divisive issue in organic.

* BASF and Cargill have been granted membership in the OTA, even though their GMO and chemical products “are actively harming” organic farmers.

* The OTA defends its governance, transparency and organic agenda.

For some people, having BASF — one of the world’s most powerful chemical and GMO companies — as a member of the Organic Trade Association (OTA) is not a problem.

For Arran Stephens, CEO and Co-Founder of the fiercely independent, family-owned Nature’s Path, this was something that he could no longer tolerate.

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A message from E3Live

"My Everyday, Must-Have Green Organic Aquabotanical"

The best testimonial that I can give is that I drink this every single day, as it impacts my mood in an incredibly positive way.

E3Live + BrainON is certified organic, fresh-frozen AFA (Aphanizomenon flos-aquae) with a concentrated, aqueous, organic extract of Phenylethylamine and Phycocyanin.

Learn more.

Living Maxwell

Company Stories

Final Reflections on Costa Rica, What the Heck is a Biodigester, What Noni Looks Like

Before heading down to Costa Rica, I had no idea that it would be one of the best trips that I would ever take and that it would impact me so greatly.

Now back in New York City, I have been trying to wrap my arms around why I loved it so much. Three main things come to mind:

1) First and foremost, it was a phenomenal group of people on the trip. Despite the fact that almost none of us had ever met before, we all got along really, really well. No drama, very easy, and everyone was extremely likeable.

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Living Maxwell

Company Stories

An Inspirational New Documentary from Dr. Bronner’s — Journey to Pavitramenthe

Regenerative agriculture is a major trend in the organic food world these days, but for many people, it is a confusing and uncertain term.

Wanting people to understand just what ‘regenerative’ means and how the company is embracing this agricultural practice around the world, Dr. Bronner’s has just released an inspirational and compelling new documentary called Journey to Pavitramenthe.

This short film tells the story of fair trade, small-scale farmers in Bareilly, India – located in the state of Uttar Pradesh, 170 miles east of Delhi — who produce regenerative organic mint oil for Dr. Bronner’s products.

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