Organic Monitor, a specialist research, consulting and training company, anticipates the natural and organic labelling trend is one that will continue, based on upcoming developments.
There are now over 20 different types of labels available for use on cosmetic and personal care products. These labels vary in descriptions from ethical labels such as Halal to those promoting sustainability and/or safety aspects.
Food to Cosmetics
The prominence of labelling in the food industry has now reached the cosmetics industry and common labels such as Fairtrade and gluten-free can now be seen on food produce and cosmetic packaging.
“Many Asian countries, such as Japan, China, India, South Korea, Taiwan, have national regulations for organic agriculture and organic foods. A growing number of these countries are now looking at developing regulations for organic cosmetics & personal care products,” says Amarjit Sahota, Director of Organic Monitor.
“South Korea has made an announcement to this effect, and we (Organic Monitor) expect more countries to follow suit.”
Other labels such as EWG Verified and the Whole Foods Market Premium Body Care have been designed specifically for products within the cosmetics and beauty industries.
Global Influence
In Western Europe, natural and organic labels lead ethical schemes. There, approximately 3% of personal care products are certified according to popular standards.
National labelling is another growing trend within the APAC and Latin American cosmetic and beauty sectors.
South Korea plans to have a national standard for such products, while the Brazilian government has already regulated the ‘organic cosmetic’ term. With Australia also introducing its national standard for organic cosmetics in 2013, this is encouraging other countries to follow suit.
Sustainable Cosmetics
The future direction of ethical labels will be featured in the Latin American and Asia-Pacific editions of the Sustainable Cosmetics Summit.
The Asia-Pacific edition of the Sustainable Cosmetics Summit will be held in Hong Kong on 14-15 November. It will cover a wide range of sustainability issues in the cosmetic and personal care industry.
A dedicated workshop at the Asia-Pacific edition, on the 15 November, will give details on the future of ethical labels in the cosmetics and personal care products.
This new workshop, run by Amarjit Sahota, Founder and President, Organic Monitor and Alain Khaiat, President, Seers Consulting, will detail the variety of ethical labels for cosmetics and personal care products, along with the technical and formulation issues related to its adoption.
The duo will discuss the Halal standard and the permissible and prohibited raw materials associated with it. They will also cover natural and organic cosmetic standards, and the upcoming ISO standard.
“In general, consumers want authenticity. When they buy natural and organic products, they want legitimate natural & organic products. This authenticity now exists for organic foods, as many Asian countries have introduced national regulations, however, we have yet to see this in the Asian cosmetic industry,” adds Sahota.
For more information on the Sustainable Cosmetics Summit in Hong Kong on 14-15 November 2016, please click here.