Unfortunately, climate change is not the only threat to reefs, with sunscreen posing a huge danger. Over 14,000 tons of sunscreen wash off us and into our oceans every year.

With over 80% of sunscreens containing chemicals known to bleach and kill coral reefs, such as?Oxybenzone, Benzophenone-1, Benzophenone-8, OD-PABA, 4-methylbenzylidene camphor, 3-Benzylidene camphor, nano-Titanium dioxide, nano-Zinc oxide, Octinoxate and Octocrylene. Just 0.14 milligrams of Oxybenzone per litre alone is enough to kill coral larvae, yet as much as 1.4 milligrams have been found in reefs near popular tourist destinations. As a world leader in ‘reef-safe’ products, Stream2Sea saw an opportunity to do much more – turning one of coral's biggest threats into its solution.

Introducing Reef Relief. The world’s first sunscreen that feeds and nourishes coral. Using leading marine scientists and cosmetic technicians, we formulated a unique and unprecedented product that removed all harmful chemicals, but also added a bespoke blend of nutrients that coral naturally feeds on. Our base formula is an eco-cert-compliant mineral-based sunscreen that has been tested and proven safe for freshwater fish, saltwater fish and coral larvae and has passed the stringent HEL Labs Protect Land + Sea Certification.?

We then added a bespoke, FDA-compliant trace mineral blend made from marine nutrients used by coral farmers to boost healthy growth.

We also created a new classification marque, RPF (Reef Protection Factor) with the future aim that tourism boards and governments encourage and eventually require sunscreens used on their coastlines to carry the RPF marque, regardless of brand.

In terms of regulation, Reef Relief has been formulated to be ‘Haereticus Protect Land + Sea Certified’, it’s been skin patch-tested, and all claims on our packaging has been approved by experts at Bionok.

We also undertook 18 weeks of rigorous coral testing in association with the University of Derby, supervised by leading coral scientist and Marine Advisor to the United Nations, Professor Michael Sweet.

Long-term outcomes: We’re in talks with Maldives, Australian, Egyptian and Vanuatuan government and tourism, to launch in their territories. We’re looking for as many global partners as possible to help the world’s reefs.

Scalability: Reef Relief is a hugely scalable idea and we’ve only just begun. With more support, PR and client partners over the coming months we hope to grow significantly. A big multiplier for scalability is the RPF marque, which can extend to all other sunscreen brands globally. Industry Relevance: Reef Relief is the world’s first sunscreen that feeds coral instead of harming it.

RPF is the first coral-related certification marque for sunscreens - vital because the term ‘reef-safe’ is highly unregulated in the industry. Testing: Partnering with the University of Derby’s world-renowned Aquatic Research Facility, the 18-week study was the most rigorous coral and sunscreen study ever conducted.

Using 9 tanks: Control, Reef-safe sunscreen, Reef Relief, and measuring growth in 3 ways (vertical, horizontal and wet weight). And to ensure phylogenetic diversity, we tested using four diverse species of coral, where most studies use only one.

Results: University of Derby coral testing showed outstanding results against other ‘Reef Safe’ sunscreens, with 50% horizontal, 36% vertical and 7% wet weight growth.

Results against Control (no sunscreen in the water) were an incredible 21% horizontal, 5% vertical, 0.2% wet weight growth.

PR: In a 2-week soft launch: 583,671 Social interactions in the first 48 hours

1.2 billion reach

711+ publications worldwide.