We love Rose for the multitude of benefits it provides for our skin, which you can read more about on our blog post about them. Roses are incredible for hydration, barrier repair, antioxidant activity, as well as plumping and firming the skin – to name a few things! However, most of us are not aware that Rose is a beauty crop that is incredibly vulnerable to forced labor, unethical treatment, and unfair wages.
Rose distillery houses are big business in Bulgaria, but the Roses themselves are farmed and harvested by small farmers. Unfair wages and unethical treatment of farm workers is not an isolated concern to the USA – this is something to be aware of for Bulgaria also. Bulgarian Rose prices remain incredibly low despite the long hours and intense labor conditions, and these low prices point to unethical practices.