Two Tipperary friends have fused years of friendship, pharmacy and food to bring a natural bodycare range using sheep milk, Bánór, to life.
Elaine Crosse and Nicola Lyons, have used their skillset to develop the collection, made using sheep milk from Elaine’s brothers’ farm in Cashel.
“We are friends for years, having attended the Ursuline Thurles together, but our families were friends well before that. Elaine’s father used to shear our sheep,” said Nicola.
A pharmacist, Nicola has been working in dermatological skincare specialising in medicated creams. She recently completed the Green Cert and Enterprise Ireland’s New Frontiers programme which provided some funding to allow her work in the business.
Elaine has worked across the food industry in Bord Bia and Danone with a focus on dairy, and is currently head of advocacy at Airfield Estate, the only working farm in Dublin city and an educational charity.
Elaine’s brothers, Michael and Brendan, milk a flock of Assaf and Lacaune sheep. The brothers supply milk to various farmhouse cheesemakers and have also made ice cream and milk powder.
“During Covid, we were sitting around Elaine’s kitchen table talking to Brendan. As I worked in dermatology, Brendan started telling us how sheep milk has loads of benefits for the skin, and we should look into it as sheep milk is a special ingredient,” said Nicola.
“Elaine’s dad, who is also a sheep farmer, added that lanolin from sheep’s wool is really moisturising. He said his hands were always soft after shearing sheep’s wool.
“From there, the idea took legs and after two years in development, in December 2022, we launched Bánór. The Bánór name is a combination of two Irish words,’ bán’ and ‘ór’, meaning white gold as that is how special we believe sheep milk is,” she added.
Nicola hopes the brand based on natural sustainability and traceability combined with the unique benefits of sheep milk for the skin will allow Bánór to succeed.
“Our customer wants simple yet indulgent products. People are becoming much more interested in ingredients as we have already seen in food. We love the already much used term ‘food for the skin’ and want to create our own, ‘grass to glow’,” she said.
Elaine said: “We are taking a primary agricultural product – sheep milk in the first instance – to make a high value secondary product – skincare. Ireland has already been successful in this space when we look at Voya’s success with seaweed.”
Bánór’s first body range includes a milk wash, milk lotion, butter scrub, wool oil and a candle. Now manufactured in Wexford, it is stocked in over 40 outlets including Arnotts and Meagher’s pharmacy, as well as through its online shop.
Elaine and Nicola also exhibit at events such as Bloom and the Horse Show at the RDS to build awareness and educate people on sheep milk and wool.
Research carried out by leading Irish research centre, the Centre for Applied Bioscience Research in Tralee, showed that Bánór’s sheep milk products provide antioxidant and anti-ageing properties, increase collagen production and provide skin barrier protection.
“Sheep are special animals steeped in heritage. They are synonymous with Ireland and have helped sustain farming families with meat and wool production. However, we have yet to fully appreciate how beneficial their milk is.
“Sheep milk is one of the most nutritious milks available. It is truly a unique ingredient, not widely available. We shouldn’t forget that milk has been used as a beauty and medicinal treatment for thousands of years.
“Sheep milk has many properties that help the skin in acting as the body’s protective barrier. Its naturally high fat content nourishes the skin, it is a readymade source of vitamins and minerals that all preserve and improve the skin’s appearance and it contains proteins and essential amino acids which are richer than cows’ or goats’ milk,” Elaine said.
Sheep production, Elaine said, is one of Ireland’s largest farm sectors and plays an important economic, environmental and societal role but particularly, in the most rural regions, “however, the sector is challenged by its economic viability with diminishing returns for farmers from wool and meat”.
Ireland should seriously consider the potential of the third product from sheep milk, Elaine contended.
“Developing Irish sheep milk could make a significant improvement to the viability and resilience of the entire sheep sector allowing for more productivity. Sheep milk as demonstrated by our New Zealand counterparts can deliver a return for farmers,” she added.
Elaine said that Ireland’s sheep milk industry can thrive by adopting the family farm model and leveraging the country’s world-class dairy expertise and green reputation.
This efficient model, with a shorter milking season, is well suited to farmers on marginal land.
“By increasing farm output compared to drystock, it offers an opportunity to reduce livest numbers while achieving more with less, supporting generational renewal on farms,” she said.
“Sheep milk production is a major industry globally and is a larger industry than the organic dairy industry. It has a unique composition which results in it being suitable for many people, including those who suffer from cow dairy intolerances.
“The main outlet for the milk is cheese production such as feta, halloumi, Roquefort and pecorino. There is a growing demand for premium, alternative dairy products across the world,” she added.
Elaine and Nicola are looking to the future with confidence: “We are looking to focus on innovation, sustainability and heritage. We will try to grow the Irish market and invest in research, while working on some new products.”