An Honest Look at the Pros & Cons of Bee’s Wrap

Have you heard the buzz about Bee’s Wrap? Touted as a sustainable, reusable alternative to plastic wrap, there’s a whole lot to like. And if you watch this video of Sarah Kaeck, the woman behind Bee’s Wrap, who started waxing her own cloth in her own kitchen, you will absolutely fall in love with it too. In another life, I would totally live on her sun-dappled farm growing vegetables and reviving traditional food storage techniques while my beautiful children feed goats.

Alas, it’s cloudy today and my window looks into the apartment building across the street. So let’s talk about the pros and cons of Bee’s Wrap for the rest of us.

One of the main selling points of Bee’s Wrap is that it’s made from materials you can feel good about: bee’s wax, jojoba oil, tree resin, and organic cotton. Basically, a mixture of the first three ingredients is painted in a thin layer onto sheets of organic cotton and, presto! You have Bee’s Wrap.

The other main advantage? It’s reusable. Once you’re done with your wrap, just wash it with gentle soap and cool water (hot water can melt it), then let it air-dry to use it again.

Of course, once the Bee’s Wrap has been used for about a year, it won’t work as well, but you can cut it into strips to compost it — or use it as a fire-starter!

1. It’s made from ingredients you can feel good about.
2. It’s reusable.
3. It’s compostable.

So why wouldn’t you make the switch? While Bee’s Wrap is relatively bendy — the warmth from your hands makes the wax mixture pliable, so you can press it onto the rim of, say, a glass container or fold it around a sandwich — some users complain that it’s not quite pliable enough to get a complete seal.

It’s also not ideal for wrapping things like raw meat (i.e., things you wouldn’t want to touch other surfaces you’ll use again). And, overall, it’s more work: Once you eat the sandwich you wrapped, you have to carry the wrapper around for the rest of the day and then wash it. You can’t just chuck it in the trash like you would plastic wrap.

Finally, there’s the sticker shock: Although we suspect that on a per-use basis the price would even out, a single large wrap will cost you $7.20 and a set of three small wraps is $16.

• It’s not as pliable as plastic wrap and not ideal for all foods.
• It requires maintenance.
• It’s pricey.

What do you think? Have you tried it? Will you try it?