Policy & Science
No legal definition for Natural Cosmetics exists, neither in Europe nor elsewhere. All cosmetic products, whether conventional or natural and organic, must comply with the EU Cosmetics Directive but a definition of authentic natural and organic cosmetics is needed.
As more and more products are marketed under the banner of natural properties, the line between Natural Cosmetics and conventional products has become increasingly blurred – this is not acceptable. A valid standard is urgently required. It must be purely consumer oriented and leave no room for black holes. Misleading claims must be avoided.
Strict criteria
This is a challenging task. Natural Cosmetics are much more complex than, for example, organic foodstuffs. Natural cosmetics need to perform a cosmetic purpose and the performance cannot always be achieved with natural ingredients alone.
But the fact that compromises are necessary must not allow the criteria to permit non-transparent and unnecessary exceptions. A high standard needs clear principles and strict boundaries and this can only be ensured if the definition draws on the widest expertise available.
NaTrue Scientific Committee
This is precisely how the NaTrue Scientific Committee developed the NaTrue standard. The committee not only consists of NaTrue member’s scientific experts but also of renowned cosmetic experts from other institutions. It is furthermore open to guests and observers.
Next to safeguarding and developing the NaTrue standard, the NaTrue scientific committee offers its participation in consultative processes that are concerned with the definition and assessment of natural ingredients.
A precise definition of plant based products
A precise definition of plant-based products is also necessary because they are very different from other substances and notably chemical substances - not merely because they are not synthetic but also because they are very complex.
Natural complex substances (NCS) are botanically derived substances that are obtained from specific parts of plants through physical treatment. What sets them apart from chemical substances, is that they are never quite the same – they have a highly variable composition depending on:
- the plants’ climate and region of growth (conditions of growth)
- the time of year they are harvested
- variations between biological species and subspecies
- the extraction processes used (extrusion, centrifugation, filtration, distillation, cutting, pressing etc.)
Natural substances must be accordingly recognized and legal certainty ensured. The lack of legal definition not only has the potential to lead to false claims, there is also a danger that producers replace natural ingredients with synthetic ingredients if natural substances are not classified appropriately.
