Mit Achiote Paste rot eingefärbte Hände halten eine offene Achiote-Kapsel

On track for SUN HARMONY. An extraordinary story

An interview with Margot Esser-Greineder, the founder of PHARMOS NATUR Green Luxury

Bursting with passion, Margot Esser-Greineder is always on the look-out for special plants and the profound, ancient knowledge that Sacred Plants bear within them.
A research trip to the Achuar indigenous people in the Amazon rainforest was what led her to a unique plant that she uses in an entirely natural sunscreen. It’s called annatto. Annatto seeds produce a dark red juice, and the indigenous people use it as an effec-tive, natural sun protection.

You travel the world to find extraordinary plants for your Green Luxury natural prod-ucts. What was the initial spark for the sun protection range SUN HARMONY?

I know how painful too much sun can be from my own agonising experience. But that was also the time when I discovered the healing powers of the world of plants and experienced the miracles of nature.
Consequently, I started to search for plants and fruits that would help us live in harmony with the sun, so we could use their beneficial qualities and still be protected.

gelbe Blume mit Sonneneinstrahlung und Himmel im Hintergrund

You knew that they existed. Intelligent plants that protect us from the damaging effects of UV radiation. The only question was: where?
...exactly. The Achuar indigenous people in Ecuador’s rainforest helped us to find what we were looking for. We made the breakthrough on a research trip to the indigenous peoples of the Ama-zon rainforest in 2014. My husband Paul and I were introduced to the magic of the rainforest whilst staying as a guest of the Achuar tribe. On hikes with the tribal elder, we encountered the special regenerative power of the rainforest both on our skin and on our minds and souls. We experienced profound serenity and inner contentment.

And you also experienced nature in her most quintessential form?
It was absolutely unbelievable. This great variety and extraordinary beauty. Exotic plants and gigan-tic trees. They gave off a pure, fresh and pleasant scent. It cleared our bodies and minds of all thoughts. We felt purified. Inside and out.
Medicinal plants were the focus of our interest. The tribal elder initiated us into the secrets of their healing rituals and how they use plants. Our souls were enchanted by the polyphonic singing and the concert of gorgeously coloured birds. We felt great respect when the shaman showed us the recent panther tracks. It couldn’t be too far away...

What happened next?
Before we set out into the rainforest, the tribal elder told us to apply sun protection. We had delib-erately not brought any European products with us; rather, we were absolutely convinced that we would learn something important from the locals. After all, they need to protect themselves too. And that proved true. He carefully painted signs on our faces, a way of asking the spirits of the rain-forest to protect us:
We come with peaceful intent. We do not wish to fell trees or to plunder. Then we received the juice of red seeds to rub into our faces, hands and arms, and it turned our skin red. I couldn’t help but wonder: is this where the phrase “redskin” comes from?

So this is the origin of the idea behind the SUN HARMONY range?
I can only say that, at first, we were astonished. We were in the sun with the indigenous people all day. We spent hours in a dugout canoe travelling up the Amazon – water boosts ultraviolet radia-tion by reflecting sunlight. By nightfall we found not even a hint of sun irritation on our skin. Amaz-ing. We were thrilled.

You experienced annatto’s 100% natural, fascinating sun protection?
Yes. We always knew that nature has an incredible number of treasures. We have tried out many things and experimented a great deal. We persevered, lovingly and joyfully. We wanted to trans-form our experience with annatto, the perfect sun protection, into a PHARMOS NATUR sunscreen. Without giving its users red skin! And finally, we have succeeded. What’s more, we have even im-proved the products, again.

PHARMOS NATUR wouldn’t be able to do any of this without precious partnerships from around the world. What do you mean by this?
Our sacred plants are grown by smallholders with a great deal of dedication, care and manual skill, right where they live. PHARMOS NATUR pays the farmers a fair price and supports them to send their children to school. By purchasing and funding tools, sinking wells and regularly exchanging knowledge, many farmers have gained the independence to take full responsibility for themselves and their families. Our commitment reduces our ecological footprint.