Market research firm Mintel says the 35% growth since 2005 of the natural and organic personal care products market has prompted retailers to stock more of these products.
Mintel Global New Products Database (GNPD) says the market is now valued at $465 million, and has seen a 53% increase in the number of new organic and/or all-natural product launches in the past two years--from 554 in 2005 to 846 in 2007.
Pre-amble.
The SCCP has the subject of tea tree oil (TTO) on its agenda for its Brussels meeting of 22.01.08. You will remember that allegations about the instability & skin safety of tea tree oil, as well as complaints about gaps in the toxicity data, were previously made in the flawed SCCP Opinion SCCP/0843/04, to which the Australian Tea Tree Oil Industries Association ATTIA (but not producers of Chinese TTO) dutifully responded by privately submitting evidence to the SCCP on March 31st 2007. You might want to consider some further points:
London – September 18, 2007 /SOAPWIRE/ -- Global sales of natural & organic cosmetics are soaring with revenues projected to approach US $7 billion this year. New research by Organic Monitor (www.organicmonitor.com) finds that North America and Europe are the two engines of growth, comprising the bulk of the US $1 billion sales increase this year.
Please find attached, the objection to the SCCP Opinion SCCP/0942/05 proposing the limitation of furanocoumarins (FCF’s) to 1 ppm in cosmetic products, as sent by mail by Cropwatch to EU officials this week.
The basis of the objection is that:
1. The scope - in terms of the range of natural aromatic ingredients involved, which contain FCF’s - is incomplete & has been underestimated by the SCCP committee ‘experts’.
2. Available information on the actual FCF contents of natural botanically derived products is sparse, & in some cases it appears that what we have been told over the years by trade suppliers, writers on safety matters etc., appears dubious, confusing, or actually misleading - for example it is contested that distilled citrus oils are (totally) FCF free. We need clarification on these matters before any decisions can take place.
The current Japanese Standards for Cosmetics (23 March 2005) are available on the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare website. http://www.mhlw.go.jp/english/topics/cosmetics/index.html
Source:
Maurice O. Hevey / ConvergentCosmetics.com
CropWatch, published by Tony Burfield is an occasional bulletin focussing on various issues surrounding the status and exploitation of aromatic & medicinal crops.
Issue 7 of CropWatch (published Jan/Feb 2005) contains a List of Essential Oils Recommended by Cropwatch Not to Be Used in Cosmetics/Perfumery.
http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~nodice/new/magazine/crop7/cwatch7.htm
Source: Tony Burfield - www.tonyburfield.co.uk
The IFRA position.
The 38th Amendment to the IFRA Standard (Nov 2003) states that "linalool and natural products known to be rich in linalool, such as bois de rose, coriander or ho wood oils, should only be used when the level of peroxides is kept to the lowest practical value. It is recommended to add antioxidants at the time of production of the raw material. The addition of 0.1% BHT or a-tocopherol has shown great efficiency. The maximum peroxide level for products in use should be 20mmol/l."
It's no surprise that coloring your hair or painting your nails might be hazardous to your health. But what about your favorite shampoo, face cream or sunscreen?
"Many people would be shocked and surprised that the government doesn't require safety testing for products we use up and down our bodies every day," says Lauren Sucher, spokeswoman for the nonprofit Environmental Working Group.
The Washington-based group, which specializes in product analysis, spent six months investigating more than 10,000 ingredients found in 7,500 personal-care products in 25 categories, including products for eyes, hair, skin, teeth, babies and beauty.
It rated products based on potential health risks and lack of safety screening, then created an interactive database to allow consumers to search for the brands they use.
This article was presented to the International Federation of Aromatherapists Annual AGM London Oct 11th 2003, and is reproduced here by kind permission of the author, Tony Burfield http://www.tonyburfield.co.uk
Copyright © Tony Burfield Oct.2003
Part 1. Oil Adulteration.
Introduction.
As far as adulteration is concerned, producers and distributors of essential oils are frequently painted as “the bad guys”, but it should be pointed out that their oil customers frequently demand oils below the market price while still wanting to be told that they are authentic. In this climate, the honest oil trader may find it virtually impossible to survive on the margins he is allowed to make (many have already gone bust). For example, in the late 20th Century, lavender oil (Lavandula angustifolia) was being sold almost as a loss leader by many French producers as the market was unwilling to pay a realistic price; currently, the aroma industry is dominated by a handful of large and powerful international houses whose corporate buyers often attempt to drive raw material prices to impossibly low levels, not allowing workable profits to be made. This sets the scene for unethical practices. Full Article>>
When you look at a truly pure and natural cosmetic product, do you look at ingredients with complete documentation as to the processes that created it? Or do you accept non-specific marketing materials which may indicate that the raw material is “nature identical,” meaning synthetic? It often occurs that raw materials start off as natural but the processing of them has changed the raw into something no longer considered truly natural.
If you are manufacturing a personal care or beauty product that you would like to claim as natural, how many of the ingredients within the formulation should be natural? Good question. The term “nature” means “existing in or produced by nature, not artificial,” according to the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Natural products should be made without artificial colors or flavors, using natural alternatives to environmentally unsafe compounds and always looking for alternatives to synthetic ingredients. They should be packaged in safe, recycled and recyclable containers and respect vegetarian and vegan philosophies. Natural cosmetic manufacturers have the responsibility to ensure that they are making the most pure, natural and safe product possible. Yet, because it is not a term regulated or defined by a regulatory body, the definition of natural is left up to interpretation by manufacturers.
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