[ Essential Specialised Products]
THE RISE OF
vegan beauty products Consumer awareness shapes the beauty industry as formulators adapt to a global push for vegan, natural and sustainable innovations. Environmental impact, ingredient origins and social responsibility issues shift consumer perception to quality, traceable products.
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eauty regimens have the potential to expose consumers to a variety of toxic and unpleasant chemicals, with small doses adding up to harmful possibilities. As formulators and brands explore dependable options, organic and natural formulations are increasing in demand. Inspired by nature, Arbor Organic Technologies, represented locally by Essential Specialised Products (ESP), provides a range of value-adding ingredients. Veganism, once considered a niche concept, has now become mainstream. As consumers become more concerned about sustainable living, they are becoming increasingly aware of the ingredients and production methods behind their favourite products. Today’s consumers are more knowledgeable and have a wide variety of product options to choose from and an abundance of information at hand when deciding. This demand for anything vegan is making other industries take notice, especially the beauty industry.
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FORMULATION DESIGN // WWW.PHARMACOS.CO.ZA
Unclear terminology defined There is a lot of confusing jargon around vegan beauty terminology – ‘cruelty-free’ is one example, with many people believing that vegan beauty and cruelty-free are one and the same. Simply put, vegan beauty means the absence of animal-derived ingredients or by-products, while cruelty-free refers to a product that is not tested on animals. In other words, it is possible for a vegan item to have been tested on an animal and a cruelty-free product to contain animal ingredients. Common animal-derived ingredients found in beauty products include honey, beeswax, lanolin (wool grease), squalene (shark liver oil), carmine (crushed-up beetles), gelatine (cow or pig bones, tendons, or ligaments), allantoin (cow urine), ambergris (whale vomit) and placenta (sheep organs). While these ingredients are harmless, they are not necessarily better for consumer products. The thought of these animal products being
