By Breelyn Vanleeuwen, PA-C | Founder & CEO of Daily Shade
The Part Most Brands Don't Talk About
When I was deep in the four years of R&D that eventually became Daily Shade, this report was shown by NBC and it is awful to watch. It shows hideous conditions of young children mining Mica, a mineral used in so many products it would shock you, from car parts to cosmetics. Tiny humans, I'm talking as young as 3, are going down 50 feet underground to farm Mica for 12+ hours a day in the blazing heat. They share one cup of rice a day amongst them. They sleep there so people won't steal their Mica crops. And they get paid $3 a week per family for 6 tons of Mica. The conditions are horrid. In Madagascar alone Terre des Hommes estimates at least 10,000 children are involved in Madagascar’s mica sector. You can watch the full video and report HERE.
I just watched the coverage again and it makes my stomach turn. I hate it. And further more I flat out refuse to be any part of this horrid practice. There are ways to collect Mica responsibly. To pay higher prices in exchange for regulation and fairness. To do the work to find out WHERE the Mica is beings sourced and ensure it is sourced RESPONSIBLY.
These people depend on their job mining Mica to live, the issues are massive like how little they are paid, the exploitation of children, the conditions of where they are living and being fed and forced into labor. Luckily, there are organizations out there regulating Mica farming and providing fair working conditions. These people are doing God's work. Just like that report from NBC News states, many companies are just looking for the cheapest Mica they can get, not caring where it comes from or who is being hurt in the process.
What Is Mica, and Why Is It in Sunscreen?
Mica is a naturally occurring mineral that you'll find in a wide range of cosmetic products, from eyeshadow to foundation to, yes, sunscreen. In our formulation, mica is part of what gives Babe Shade its skin-blurring, Ghost-Face-Free finish. It helps offset the inherent whiteness of zinc oxide so the product disappears on the skin rather than sitting on top of it. It doesn't leave a color behind just allows the white zinc to disappear on the skin.
It's functional. It's effective. But, if you're sourcing it without thinking about where it comes from, it can come with a really serious problem.
What We Actually Did
Every ingredient in Babe Shade went through a sourcing process that wasn't just about performance. It was about traceability. Does this ingredient have a responsible mining or harvesting cycle? Can we verify where it came from? Does the supplier operate under labor standards we're willing to stand behind?
For mica specifically, we work with a supplier that is committed to responsible sourcing practices. That means a verifiable supply chain, ethical labor standards, child labor laws in place and regulated and a commitment to ongoing transparency. We aligned with suppliers who share these values, because the integrity of what's inside the bottle doesn't stop at the ingredient itself. It includes every step of how that ingredient got there. We're aligned with the Responsible Mica Initiative, which guides how we think about mineral sourcing across our formulation.
I'm not going to share every detail of our supplier relationships here. That's our proprietary formulation work, and it represents years of careful, intentional research. But what I will tell you is that this wasn't an afterthought. We didn't just grab the cheapest mica on the market and call it a day. We looked hard, we asked hard questions, and we made hard choices when the answers weren't good enough.
Why This Is Part of Being a TRUE Mineral Brand
When I started Daily Shade, the goal was never just to make a sunscreen without UV chemical filters. The goal is to make a product that parents can actually trust, from the active ingredient down to the way every raw material was sourced and handled.
96% of sunscreens on the market, even the ones claiming to be 100% mineral, contain hidden UV chemical filters. But the transparency problem in this industry goes deeper than active ingredients. It goes all the way into supply chains that most brands have no visibility into, and no interest in investigating.
We do.
That's what TRUE mineral means to us. Not just a label. A standard. One that covers not only what's in the formula, but how every piece of it was made and where it came from.
The Bottom Line for Parents
You shouldn't have to be a supply chain expert to buy sunscreen. But you deserve to know that the brand you're trusting has done that work on your behalf. We have. And we'll keep doing it as we grow. We will keep evaluating and asking questions to ensure we are collecting our ingredients responsibly and sustainably.
Babe Shade SPF 30 is formulated with non-nano zinc oxide as the sole active UV filter, 99.4% naturally derived, and sourced with the kind of care that I'd want applied to anything that touches my kids.
That's the standard I held us to. That's the standard I'll keep holding us to.
Shop Babe Shade SPF 30 at dailyshade.com
Frequently Asked Questions
What is mica and why is it used in sunscreen? Mica is a naturally occurring mineral used in cosmetic formulations to provide a light-diffusing, skin-blurring effect. In mineral sunscreens like Babe Shade, it helps the zinc oxide blend into the skin without leaving a white cast.
Is mica safe for use on children's skin? Yes. Mica as an ingredient is well-tolerated and considered safe for cosmetic use. The concern around mica is not about skin safety, it's about ethical sourcing. At Daily Shade, we take both seriously.
What is the mica sourcing problem in cosmetics? A large portion of the world's mica has historically been mined in regions where child labor and unsafe working conditions are documented concerns. Many cosmetic brands source mica without verifying where it comes from or under what conditions it was mined.
How does Daily Shade source its mica? We work with suppliers committed to ethical labor standards, traceability, and responsible mineral sourcing. We're also aligned with the Responsible Minerals Initiative as part of our broader commitment to formulating with integrity.
Does Daily Shade disclose its specific suppliers? No. Our supplier relationships are part of our proprietary formulation work, representing years of careful research. What we do share is our sourcing standards, our commitments, and the third-party frameworks we align with.
What is the Responsible Mica Initiative? The Responsible Mica Initiative (RMI) is an industry-led program that helps companies source minerals responsibly, with a focus on avoiding supply chains linked to conflict or human rights abuses.
Is "natural" the same as "ethically sourced"? No. An ingredient can come directly from the earth and still be associated with harmful labor practices or environmental damage. At Daily Shade, natural and ethical are both requirements, not interchangeable terms.
