“Aloe Vera impresses with 200 ingredients”
200 valuable Inhalsstoffe, qualitatively high-quality Aloe Vera gel and 35 years experience: Our business guide Christine Tratz spoke with the Wellness travel magazine SpaInside about the topic Aloe Vera.
SpaInside: Ms. Tratz, what makes aloe vera so unique for the skin?
Christine Tratz: Aloe vera has the ability to protect itself from water loss due to the water-binding structure of its leaves. This allows it to survive in the driest and most barren conditions. Have you ever observed how the leaves of aloe vera can twist in, curl and close in seconds? This allows the plant to avoid the direct threat of water loss. Because of this, aloe vera is fondly regarded as a versatile plant. With more than 200 valuable ingredients, it has an impressive range of effects. The most commonly used parts are the aloe vera fillets – the inner, watery pulp of the leaf. In addition, the pure aloe vera gel in its active form is an excellent activator for the ingredients of our skin care creams. The skin perceives this precious liquid as a true moisture oasis! The gel regenerates and moisturizes even the most sensitive skin.
Are there qualitative differences in the products and what should I look for when buying?
Of course, there are differences in quality, often the products usually do not contain real pure aloe vera, that is, only the gel, but machine-pressed plants along with the leaf bark and the harmful aloin contained therein. The control of our aloe vera is done step by step during the growth, harvesting, processing up to the delivery. The most important aspect for us is the freshness of the raw material. This means that the time span from harvest to processing is only a few hours. This is very important, otherwise oxidation processes will affect the active complexes. The purity and quality of our gel, the main active ingredient of our entire product range, is proven by scientific analysis. The raw material is certified by the International Aloe Science Counsil (IASC). So when buying aloe vera products, you should look at whether the gel is used and also at the percentage of genuine aloe vera. This is often vanishingly small.
You have been producing aloe vera cosmetics for over 25 years. How did you come across this plant?
We spent a lot of time in America back then. There we got to know and love aloe vera. From the beginning, we were inspired by the incredible possibilities that the active ingredients of the plant can offer people for their well-being. From this, the idea was born to offer high-quality aloe vera products in Germany. In the beginning we imported the finished products directly from America. Due to the high costs and the aspect of sustainability, we decided to produce the products ourselves and also to develop our own treatment methods.
And where exactly do you get the plants and gel from?
On the organic plantations in Mexico, harvesting is done in painstaking detail and care is taken to ensure that the active ingredient content is not reduced by leaf injury. The leaves are freed from soil residues and carefully washed. After separating the thorny leaf sides and the hard outer shell, the gel is peeled out by hand. Although this method is very laborious, it preserves all the active substances of the plant. And this is the only way to avoid that components of the leaf shell are contained in the gel. After gentle transport and further processing in Germany, a high proportion of these high-quality aloe vera fillets form the basis of our care products.
And which product is your favorite?
My favorite product is our Super Gel. It remains a milestone in development to this day. The name says it all. It is an active serum with 99.8 percent Bio Active Aloe vera, without the addition of chemical preservatives, free of fragrances, mineral oils, parabens and PEG’s. Therefore, our motto is: “Nothing works without Super Gel”. Already at the first application the product convinces. The Super Gel pampers the whole family and is versatile, for example, for irritations and redness of the skin. The high proportion of aloe vera soothes and regenerates the skin immediately and sustainably. But my heart is also set on our latest development, our sunscreen Suntan Cream. My two daughters and I are enthusiastic divers. Unfortunately, coral stocks have been destroyed worldwide in recent years. Coral reefs form unique ecosystems, perform important ecological functions and provide habitats for thousands of animal species. When developing our sunscreen, it was therefore very important to us that there should be no danger to corals from controversial ingredients such as oxybenzone. The composition of our Suntan Cream therefore contains a novel filter package with coral-friendly filters, for the preservation of coral reefs.
(Also read our blog post about our sunscreen!)
