These bees are the balm

Moody Bee is creating a buzz with its beeswax lip balm

The Moody family stands next to their nine beehives—the source of beeswax, often a waste product but put to good use in Moody Bee lip balms. — Glynis Fediuk photo

In June of 2011 I received a vanilla and peppermint beeswax lip balm in a gift bag. Looking over the label, I was intrigued by what I read: Made by a Canadian beekeeper. Manufactued by Moody Bee Apiaries. Kimberley, B.C.

A little investigation took me to the Moody Bee website, where I discovered that Moody Bee is run by Krista and Randy Moody. While Randy maintains the hives, Krista prepares the lip balms; when I contacted them, Krista invited me to a property just outside Kimberley to see their nine hives. The chance to see beekeeping in action was not one I wanted to miss out on, though I didn't know exactly what to expect.

The hives themselves didn't require much space, taking up about a three-metre stretch of grass. I'll admit to being a bit squeemish around insects, but the bees were keeping to themselves as they flew in and out of the hives. One of the first things I learned was that it's best to do beekeeping on warm sunny days, when the bees are less likely to be ornery.

As Randy tended to the hives, the couple filled me in on the backstory of Moody Bee, starting from when they lived in Vancouver as Randy worked on his master's degree.

"Randy had a degree in forestry and was working for a forestry company," said Krista. "It’s a hard career, and work would come and go. So, he went to get his master's, so that he could have a more stable job as a biologist. To go back to school, he got a job at the commercial beekeeping place and learned all about commercial beekeeping."

For the following three years, Randy pursued his master's, while Krista had the first of three children, son Adrian. With their newfound knowledge of beekeeping, the Moodys maintained their own hives and sold honey at farmers markets. I discovered another interesting fact about beekeeping at this point—when you maintain hives, farmers will often pay to have your hives on their land, as the bees will help pollinate the crops.

Krista worked as a police dispatcher, but while on maternity leave, she began experimenting with beeswax lip balm recipes. The Moodys would often give honey as presents, and were looking for something to supplement the honey gifts. Beeswax is often a waste product, but Krista melted it and mixed it with oils. After several years and numerous formulas, in 2005 Krista finalized the recipe that would be sent out under the Moody Bee name.

After Randy graduated, the Moodys moved to Kimberley, attracted to a small mountain town where commuting was a matter of minutes, not hours, and where they could pursue cross-country and downhill skiing. As a conservation biologist, Randy's work takes him around the province doing environmental restoration for large companies. With Randy's career commitments, the beekeeping side of Moody Bee has become a hobby for him, while the lip balm creation and selling has taken centre stage.

Moody Bee allows Krista to work from home, preparing shipments destined for places around the globe. Though sales to chains and large stores are exciting, Krista is particularly appreciative of orders from small independent stores; they are often the most reliable customers, and allow for direct interaction between buyer and seller.

The couple now have three children—Adrian, 7; Kate, 3; and Evan, seven months. A workday for Krista starts after taking Adrian to school, when she organizes orders and packages lip balms for shipping. Indeed, it is very much a family operation; Krista said that Kate has been learning to count when she helps her mother dole out lip balms for orders. The kids have gone with their parents to farmers markets and get excited when they see the lip balms in stores, as a recent outing displayed.

"We had just packed and shipped (an order) to Kootenay Co-op and then we went to Nelson," said Krista. "They wanted to go in and see it on the shelf. They were really proud."