A Truro company is celebrating being honoured with a King’s Award for Enterprise.

Made for Life Organics was one of 252 to be recognised in 2024, and among only 29 businesses to be rewarded within the Sustainable Development category.

It joins more than 7,000 recipients nationwide that have been granted the award since its launch in 1965.

Founder Amanda Winwood was presented with the award just before Christmas by Col Sir Edward Bolitho OBE, Lord-Lieutenant of Cornwall, in the company of Cornwall Council chairman Cllr Pauline Giles and Lord-Lieutenant’s Cadet Chloe McCarthy, at the company headquarters in the Health and Wellbeing Innovation Centre at Treliske. She is now able to use the esteemed King’s Awards Emblem for the next five years.

“I feel quite emotional about it,” said Amanda. “The business has been going for 21 years now, and while it’s not the hugest in terms of turnover, to be recognised by His Majesty for our sustainable development – making and doing things in the right way to honour the planet - is a big thing.”

Made For Life Organics awarded King's Enterprise Award
Amanda and Geoff Winwood of Made For Life Organics show Lord Lieutenant Col Sir Edward Bolitho, Lady Bolitho and Cllr Pauline Giles around the laboratory (Made For Life Organics )

Amanda moved to Cornwall in 2000 and was joint managing director of the Budock Vean Hotel, near Falmouth, for 12 years, during which time she found her passion in connecting people with the power of plants – and encouraging inclusivity in spas for people living with cancer.

“While at the Budock Vean, I learned people were being turned away from the spa because deep tissue massage is not advised if you’ve had cancer,” she explained. “I did some research at Plymouth University and found that soft touch was really calming, and affects the mind as much as the body. Also, your sense of smell is heightened during cancer treatment.”

Made for Life Organics has since trained 3,500 UK therapists in treatments suitable for people living with cancer. These can be found not only in spas and hotels, but also on cruise lines and in end-of-life care establishments such as hospices.

Friends and collaborators were offered a behind-the-scenes tour of the laboratory where production manager Nick Lean macerates organic herbs and flowers chosen for their healing and calming properties — including calendula, rosebuds, lavender and geranium — in essential oils such as jojoba and sweet almond. All are steeped for a full lunar month before being hand-pressed and decanted on site into glass bottles and pots.

Made For Life Organics products
Made For Life Organics products (Made For Life Organics )

Some are donated to the Heart of Headland boxes given by the Royal Cornwall Hospitals Charity to all cancer patients using the Headland Centre. These are funded by the Made for Life charitable foundation in 2009, which also organises Tea & Therapy events across the UK.

Cherilyn Mackrory left Made For Life Organics 10 years ago to become the Conservative MP for Truro and Falmouth; upon losing her seat last year, she returned to the company as managing director.

“It feels like coming home – it feels good and right,” she said. “There are things I miss about being an MP, like changing lives and influencing policy; but this job has its own different challenges, and you are changing lives in a different way. I love it.”