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Organic Beauty – How Do We Really Know?

Increasingly we see ‘Certified Organic’ on natural beauty products, but what does this really mean? And is it important?

I believe the answer is YES.

Many products will carry the word Organic or Naturally Organic or some other combination containing the buzz word. The problem is this labeling is not actually regulated, meaning the product may contain 1 or 2 ingredients that are organic but may also contain some ‘nasties’ – synthetic chemicals that are far from organic.

Organic vs Certified Organic

Products that carry the Certified Organic logo on the other hand have gone through the certification process which involves meeting standards on all ingredients for production, handling, processing and labeling. There is no law or regulation that states these processes must be undertaken by any brand and there is no law that states any action can be taken with brands falsely labeling their products as organic. The whole thing is self –regulated!! Great for the brands who don’t want to bother!

Ah, but for the brands who do bother there is an up-side. The consumer is becoming more savvy, this is a good thing. If you make the choice to go organic with your beauty then don’t always believe what it says on the bottle- look for the logo – then you know!! There are also other certifications that show a brand values the integrity of their products and is completely transparent regarding their ingredients, these are the brands to look out for.

If a brand goes through the certification process then it shows they are bothered about the concerns of their customers and that they value the term organic – it is not something that should be thrown onto all packaging just to make more sales!!

The food industry uses the term ‘organic’ but is regulated, meaning they can’t say its organic unless its certified. The cosmetics industry is a different kettle of fish, maybe one day it will catch up!!

Finding Brands with Organic Integrity

So this is what you should look out for:

And these are some of my favourite brands providing it:

Weleda
Alva
Suki
Neals Yard
Aubrey Organics

…all giving real results.

You can also find more information at the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics

If you like this post you can find me at which1works.com and also over on my facebook page.  There is so much hype in the beauty industry, integrity is key!!

Photograph courtesy of epsos.de

Written by Louise White

I am an ex-cosmetic scientist turned market researcher. I love to talk about the truth behind the beauty and health industries, getting beyond all the hype. You can find me on my site http://www.which1works.com and over on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/which1works.
Shouldn't the consumer be more informed and have the right to know what really works?

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