For thousands of years, essential oils and extracts have been used for their aromatic and therapeutic benefits, with consumers looking for clean labels with words they understand many companies are under pressure to ensure that as well as being desirable, their products are also ethical, safe, and environmentally friendly whilst using natural ingredients for personal care products.
Rising demand for chemical-free personal care products, along with increasing disposable income, and improving standards of living in both developed and developing economies is fuelling demand and with the natural personal care and cosmetics market approaching $30b per year globally (and showing no signs of slowing down), it is important to consider how you can develop new products or reformulate to incorporate natural ingredients into existing lines, to meet this growing demand.
One of the main factors influencing consumer interest in natural personal care products is health.
DID YOU KNOW
According to research conducted by the non-profit Environmental Working Group, the average women applies 168 chemicals onto their skin daily
Unfortunately, combining essential oils and botanical extracts into skin care and personal care formulations can often pose a unique set of challenges in the form of stability, solubility, and compatibility issues. ‘All-natural’ products have a shorter shelf life compared to regular offerings and may not always be the best choice. While there are some ‘natural’ preservatives and anti-microbial additives, products often require synthetic preservatives to make them safe. In 2013, the ACCC had to initiate recall on 3 ‘natural’ cosmetic products due to microbial contamination. Natural products are also prone to stabilisation and separation issues, and are more susceptible to changes in humidity and temperature.
The good news is, consumers that are engaged with natural products prefer to use them even if they don’t expect them to be as effective or as stable. These customers are often happy to forego their expectations on shelf life and stability in favour of the inclusion of natural ingredients within the products they purchase.
Care must still be taken though, as natural doesn’t mean safe! Many people are drawn to natural cosmetics and personal care products because they have sensitive skin, or suffer reactions to certain ingredients (often from fragrances and preservatives), but many natural ingredients can cause skin reactions and allergies too, with various essential oils including lavender, tea tree and cinnamon known to cause reactions in some people. In addition, many citrus oils can cause photosensitivity, exposing sensitive skin to sun damage. It is important to consider these concerns in your development, as consumers often wont.
Whether you’re producing a custom scent or flavour for your formulations or including natural ingredients in your cosmetic or personal care product development, it is important to ensure it is fit for purpose. That means that as well as supporting any claims you want to make regarding the inclusion of certain ingredients, or the benefits they may bring, that consideration is given to the overall effectiveness and usefulness of the finished product.
Aromatic Ingredients can assist in the sourcing, development, supply and even contact manufacturing processes. We are focussed on assisting you in getting a finished product to market that is equally unique, useful and competitive. We strive to be at the forefront of innovation, following market and industry trends to identify and incorporate fresh concepts and niche opportunities into product development briefs for our customers and, through our exclusive partnerships we are able to work directly with producers at the source for essential oils and botanical extracts from around the world, utilising strong relationships to ensure competitive and reliable supply.
Natural ingredients, essential oils and botanical extracts are a great option for businesses looking to produce unique, high quality products for discerning customers craving a natural alternative in the products they choose.
At Aromatic Ingredients, we understand that the ingredients you utilise in your products must be of the highest quality to ensure customer satisfaction and deliver promised results. This is exactly why we offer such a large range of pure and unadulterated ingredients for your needs. We are happy to supply samples for all your development work, so please feel free to contact us!
