Citronella. Lemongrass. Geraniol. Cedarwood. Peppermint. Rosemary. Geranium. If any of those sound familiar, it's because they're not just scents — they're on the EPA's own list of recognized active ingredients for natural insect repellents, the same ingredient category legitimate natural bug sprays are built on. Bug Shot's scent wasn't chosen by accident. It was built around ingredients already known to work at repelling bugs.
Built Around Ingredients Already Known for This
Most soap fragrance is picked because it smells good to you. Bug Shot's fragrance blend was picked for a different reason: citronella, lemongrass, geraniol, cedarwood, peppermint, rosemary, and geranium essential oils are all recognized under the EPA's minimum-risk pesticide framework as active ingredients in natural insect repellents. That's the same ingredient family mainstream natural bug sprays are formulated around.
To be clear about what we're saying and what we're not: Bug Shot hasn't been tested or registered as a repellent, and we're not claiming it is one. What we can say is that it's built from ingredients bugs are known to hate — instead of the scents mass market soaps are built around.
Why Mass-Market Soap Might Be Working Against You
Walk down any big-box soap aisle and the fragrance is almost always synthetic — fruity, floral, sweet, engineered to smell appealing on a shelf. That's not just a preference issue. Researchers at Virginia Tech tested how different soap fragrances affected mosquito attraction, washing volunteers with several mainstream soap brands and tracking which scent profile mosquitoes preferred. Three of the four soaps tested — the ones with fruity or floral synthetic fragrance — actually made people more attractive to mosquitoes after washing, not less.
It's early research, and the study's own authors say more work is needed. But it lines up with the basic idea behind Bug Shot: what you wash with becomes part of your scent profile in the field.
Why There's No Tallow in This One
Other bars we make start with grass-fed tallow. Bug Shot doesn't. That's on purpose — we left animal fat out of this formula specifically so nothing in the bar works against you. It's built entirely around what you don't want on you in bug season.
What's Actually in the Bar
A blend of essential oils — ingredients chosen for what they're known for, not just how they smell — a base made from high quality natural fats, and just the right amount of grit and natural clay for that deep clean. No synthetic detergents, no fruity or floral fragrance, nothing working against you in the field.
Ready to try it for yourself? Shop Bug Shot and see why it's built differently from anything else on the shelf.
FAQ: Bug Shot Soap
Does Bug Shot repel mosquitoes? We haven't tested or registered Bug Shot as a repellent, and we're not claiming that it is one. It's formulated with essential oils — citronella, lemongrass, geraniol, cedarwood, peppermint, rosemary, and geranium — that are recognized under the EPA's minimum-risk pesticide framework as active ingredients in natural insect repellents. That's a statement about the ingredients' recognized category, not a guarantee about what happens when you shower with Bug Shot.
Is Bug Shot a substitute for bug spray? No. In areas where mosquito-borne disease is a real concern, an EPA-registered repellent like DEET is still going to outperform any soap. Bug Shot is built to complement your routine with a scent profile that isn't working against you, not to replace dedicated repellent where it really matters.
Why doesn't Bug Shot contain tallow, when your other soaps do? It's intentional. Most Hunt & Lather bars start with grass-fed tallow, but we left it out of Bug Shot on purpose, to keep the formula focused entirely on what you don't want in your scent profile during bug season.
What's the difference between Bug Shot and a fruity or floral scented soap? Mass-market soap fragrance is typically synthetic and fruity or floral. A Virginia Tech study found that kind of fragrance actually increased mosquito attraction in three of four soaps tested. Bug Shot's scent comes from a different ingredient family entirely — the same natural actives used in recognized insect repellents.
