Why use natural magnificence and wellness merchandise?

Title: Why use natural magnificence and wellness merchandise?

Do you know that merchandise may be known as ‘natural’ and have as little as 1% natural substances? That is the place The Soil Affiliation steps in, with their natural certification which ensures you’ll find magnificence and wellness merchandise you’ll be able to belief. In honour of Natural Magnificence Week, we caught up with them to find why licensed natural magnificence and wellbeing is so necessary.

What’s licensed natural magnificence and wellbeing?

Natural refers to a system of farming that works with nature, by prohibiting the usage of synthetic pesticides and fertilisers. Within the meals trade “natural” is a legally regulated time period, but no such laws exists for utilizing this label for magnificence and wellbeing merchandise. Because of this corporations can legally label merchandise as “natural” even when they comprise simply 1% natural substances!

That is why the Soil Affiliation helped to develop the worldwide COSMOS customary for Natural cosmetics, so shoppers have pointers they will belief. In a COSMOS licensed product, 95% of the substances grown on farms after which bodily processed, for instance by drying and crushing, should be natural. We even have our Non-public Label Well being & Magnificence customary for non-cosmetic wellbeing merchandise (resembling candles, lubricants, and cleansing merchandise) that has related necessities, and the identical thorough checks from farm to the completed product. Searching for merchandise with the Soil Affiliation emblem due to this fact ensures the product meets the gold customary of sustainability.

Why is natural so necessary for magnificence in addition to meals?

The identical arguments for natural meals apply to natural magnificence and wellbeing- it’s a system of farming that’s higher for the planet and the folks and animals dwelling on it. As magnificence merchandise are a luxurious, we needs to be particularly cautious that their manufacturing doesn’t destroy nature and making certain that they’re licensed natural is a technique of doing this.

Natural farming supplies many options to the present ecological points we face, together with local weather change. Soils on natural farms retailer twice as a lot carbon in them than non-organic[1], holding extra of this out of the ambiance. By prohibiting the usage of nitrogen fertilisers- that are created from fossil fuels- natural farms additionally use much less vitality than non-organic[2].

This isn’t to say the superb protections natural farming offers to biodiversity. The prohibition of synthetic pesticides, herbicides and fungicides means biodiversity is far larger on natural farms than non-organic. On common, natural farms are residence to 50% extra plant, insect, and chicken life[3]. We depend on bugs like bees, moths, butterflies, and others to pollinate our crops. If we wish to guarantee crop development can proceed to feed us- not to mention present for our magnificence products- such pollinators must be protected, and natural is the best way to take action.

Why is biodiversity a scorching subject this yr?

Sadly, our biodiversity, notably insect life, is declining. Over 40% of insect species are declining and a 3rd are endangered, and intensive farming (attributable to the usage of pesticides) has been recognized as the principle trigger[4].

The difficulty of biodiversity loss has been introduced into the general public consciousness extra this yr by the UK Authorities saying that they’re planning to loosen up the ban on neonicotinoids. These are pesticides which can be notably dangerous to insect populations, resembling bees. Only a single teaspoon of neonicotinoid pesticide is sufficient to kill 1.25 billion bees[5]. It isn’t onerous to see how this rest might wreak huge environmental havoc. The Soil Affiliation had been instrumental in first getting these pesticides banned in the EU in 2017, and choosing licensed natural magnificence and wellbeing merchandise is only one approach you’ll be able to guarantee your purchases don’t go in direction of supporting such dangerous practises.

Are there some substances that can’t be natural licensed?

Sure, as “natural” can solely seek advice from substances which were grown and farmed by way of the natural methodology. This implies many substances which can be present in magnificence and wellbeing merchandise can’t be natural licensed. The COSMOS customary states that at the least 20% of the general substances in a product should be natural, and the rationale this will appear low is as a result of water constitutes many of the formulation in lots of magnificence merchandise. Water, which isn’t grown, can’t be natural. Nevertheless, as defined above, the usual stipulates that 95% of any substances that come from agriculture should be grown organically.

There are additionally many pure minerals, together with clay and salt, which can be generally present in magnificence merchandise. Once more, these can’t be classed as “natural” as a result of they aren’t grown. Nevertheless, we additionally certify to the COSMOS Pure customary which covers all these substances. Just like the Natural customary, COSMOS Pure ensures that any pure supplies are sourced sustainably.

Is one certification higher than one other?

COSMOS Natural is an internationally recognised customary, which supplies it leverage over different requirements that exist. We developed the usual in affiliation with different European certification our bodies. Nevertheless, Soil Affiliation Certification is the one UK physique that certifies cosmetics to this customary.

It’s actually one of the crucial rigorous requirements on the market in terms of sustainability. It isn’t only for making certain the agricultural substances in a product are organic- the entire manufacturing course of is inspected.

By way of the product formulation, we prohibit sure substances along with certifying those we do allow. Those who we don’t enable embody parabens, phthalates, and artificial plastics and microplastics. It’s value our list of “Terrible Ten” ingredients for extra perception on among the substances we’d by no means enable in our licensed merchandise, however which might truly be present in another magnificence and wellbeing merchandise that label themselves “natural” with out certification!

All magnificence and wellness merchandise bought at Planet Natural are COSMOS licensed, discover our favourites right here.

[1] Gattinger, A., Muller, A., Haeni, M., Skinner, C., Fliessbach, A., Buchmann, N., Niggli, U. (2012). Enhanced high soil carbon shares underneath natural farming. Proceedings of the Nationwide Academy of Sciences of the USA of America, 109(44), 18226–31.

[2] Smith et al. (2015) The vitality effectivity of natural agriculture: A evaluation. Renewable Agriculture and Meals Techniques, 30, 3

[3] Bengtsson, J., Ahnström, J., & Weibull, A. C. (2005 ‘The results of natural agriculture on biodiversity and abundance: A meta-analysis’ Journal of Utilized Ecology, 42(2), 261–269. http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2664.2005.01005.x

[4] Sanchez-Bayo and Wyckhuys (2019) Worldwide decline of the entomofauna: A evaluation of its drivers. Organic Conservation, 232, 8-27

[5] Goulson, D ‘Are crops being devastated with out neonicotinoid safety?’ http://www.sussex.ac.uk/lifesci/goulsonlab/blog/neonicotinoid-protection