SKINCARE for the stars

Issada Mineral Cosmetics and Clinical Skincare is an Australian-owned, cruelty-free skincare and makeup company that focuses on product quality and skin health. We spoke with director Deb Farnworth-Wood about company growth, what makes Issada different, and the road to the 95th Academy Awards.

Words: Danielle McIltrot

tackle each variant from the beginning so that each formula is unique, from the base through to the active ingredients. Issada Mineral Makeup is safe for all skin types, including acne sufferers, post-treatment, sensitive skin, excess oil and dryness.

How did the opportunity to be the skincare brand in the gift bags at the 95th Academy Awards come about?

We had a superfan with contacts in the LA gifting suite, and she put Issada forward. To be honest, we didn’t really plan it, and once we heard we were in the award bags, we quickly gathered our Hollywood selection.

Can you tell us a little bit about your background?

I’ve had a varied career background which started in the UK and eventually brought me to Australia in 2007. My background is a combination of hospitality, retail and health businesses. In my early career, I was often the youngest in various roles or one of only a few women in senior posts.

Where do you get inspiration for new proucts?

After 16 years in the aesthetic industry, I understand what the beauty-conscious individual needs. My goal is to provide exceptional outcomes and products that work, so we emphasise staying abreast of new developments. This isn’t something I do alone – my whole team is focused on looking ahead and creating our own trends. Although we are a makeup and skincare business, my emphasis is on skin health, not just beauty.

There is a lot of trial and error in creating formulas and sometimes dozens of variants can be made for testing. We never test on animals but have no shortage of staff, family, friends and customers willing to try products for us.

What makes your skincare and makeup products different from others ranges on the market? We start with the problem we want to solve, and then our formulator researches ingredients and generally looks for new and innovative ways to tackle the problem. When we formulate, we

What does the future look like for Issada?

We are in discussions with several potential international partners in the UK, USA and Europe which is very exciting, but our immediate focus is to continue our expansion throughout Australia. We were recently lucky enough to secure product placement in a new movie currently being filmed on the Gold Coast which is wonderful given our Queensland roots.

Where is your favourite place to travel in Australia?

I feel quite privileged to live on the Gold Coast where we have everything we need and lots of sun and good weather. So far, my absolute favourite place is Lizard Island – I just love the incredible snorkelling around the reef and the relaxed and lazy feel there. TA

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We speak to three Australian farmers on the frontline of the war against fruit flies: one of the world’s most destructive agricultural pests.

The Future Of Rice Production

Australia’s rice industry is attempting to increase water efficiency by 75 per cent over the next five years. Rice Breeding Australia (RBA), an organisation established in 2022, is on a mission to research types of rice that require less water in production, leading to a more environmentally friendly crop. But the road ahead isn’t smooth.

For the past five years, production of rice was equivalent to 0.8 tonnes per megalitre of water. Ninety-eight per cent of this was produced in the Riverina region of New South Wales. According to Georgina Pengilley, CEO of RBA, the main focus of the research is on genetics, in the hopes of finding breed varieties that require less water.

“We look to take those best ones forward for the growers to have, and start to meet those water productivity targets,” she says.

There are many variables to consider when growing rice, such as the availability of water, weather and variety in yield. These factors mean a water efficiency target is a very difficult goal, one which requires more than just a lessthirsty crop. Rice is also impacted by cold temperatures, so farmers create a blanket of water to keep the crop insulated for the majority of the growing period. This means that researchers are also tasked with finding a crop with a higher temperature tolerance to negate this need for extra water. Despite these challenges, Georgina remains optimistic about the future of the industry.

A meteoric Valentine’s day NASA is tracking an asteroid that could collide with Earth around Valentine’s Day in 2046. Measuring approximately 50 meters wide – the length of an Olympic swimming pool – this floating object has been named 2023 DW, and has an estimated one in 607 chance of hitting our small blue planet.

As with all unusual sightings, 2023 DW has been added to the ‘risk list,’ a compilation of objects in space that have the potential to affect Earth. Each object is ranked on the Torino scale, which was developed in 1999 and rates an object’s potential to collide with Earth. The newly discovered asteroid was ranked at level one on the scale, meaning it “poses no unusual level of danger,” and “the chance of collision is unlikely, with no cause for public concern.” However, 2023 DW is the only asteroid on a list of 1,448 others that ranks higher than zero on the Torino Scale.

Italian astronomer Piero Sicoli added to the conversation by predicting that the chance of 2023 DW hitting Earth was actually one in 400, and even created a map of possible locations where the asteroid could land. However, he believes the possibility of impact will soon be ruled out. With over two decades before any real threat emerges, NASA officials remain confident that 2023 DW poses no significant threat to our planet.

“Genetics is a long game, so for RBA the main key is that we can demonstrate we’re making inroads,” she says. “The more numbers we have in the program, the more opportunity we’ve got to look at germ plasm and therefore end up with a variety that’s going to work for the growers.”