Not completely, and we would rather say so than fudge it. One part of the Bee Revival Kit is plastic: the vial that holds the syrup. Everything else you get is metal, card or compostable film.
Here is the full list, so you can judge it for yourself rather than take a badge on a website at face value.
What every part is made of
- Keyring split ring: metal.
- Capsule body: metal, in your choice of seven finishes.
- Capsule screw lid: metal.
- Vial: plastic. This is the only plastic part of the kit.
- Vial lid: metal.
- Syrup: Ambrosia, the same feed beekeepers give their colonies.
- Outer wrap: compostable cellulose film.
- Backing card: recycled card, or the optional plantable wildflower seed paper.
So the honest answer is that the kit is nearly all metal, the packaging is nearly all paper, and there is one plastic component in the middle.
Why the vial is plastic
The kit lives on your keys, in your pocket, in the bottom of a rucksack, on a dog lead, sat on, dropped on pavements and swung against door frames. It’s a hard life for a small container.
A glass vial breaks easily. Sticky syrup and glass fragments in your pocket or bag are no fun. A plastic vial takes the knocks and keeps its seal.
The vial is refillable, so it is topped up over and over again rather than thrown away after one use. It is a piece of plastic that gets used for years, which is a very different thing from a piece of plastic that gets used once (single-use).
If we find a material that survives keyring life as well as this one does, we’ll change it. Until then, we would rather have a vial that works than a claim that reads well.
The packaging is plastic-free
The kit arrives wrapped in compostable cellulose film. It looks and feels like plastic but is made from wood cellulose, so it goes on the compost heap and breaks down without leaving microplastics behind.
Behind it is either recycled card or, if you choose it, plantable wildflower seed paper holding daisy, poppy and forget-me-not seeds. Plant it, water it, and the packaging turns into the thing that helps bees most.
Every kit is made by hand here in Devon, so there are no blister packs or moulded plastic trays anywhere in the process.
What about the refill bottle?
The Bee Revival Kit Refill Bottle is a separate product. It’s a glass bottle with a rubber bung and accompanying glass pipette for refilling your kit.