TAGS: Sustainability / Natural Cosmetics
This article was first published in 2017 and is revised in 2024.
Since the launch of the COSMOS standard, it has experienced steady growth. This is despite all the challenges the industry has faced in the last few years. At this moment, the total number of certified beauty products is 35,161. This makes it more recognizable than ever among consumers in many countries around the globe.
Global brands joined the trend to validate the green positioning of their products. They achieved this by obtaining COSMOS certification for their products. The brands that followed suit are listed below:
- L’Oreal Paris,
- Pierre Fabre, and
- Espa by THG Beauty
This means the COSMOS-standard is becoming mainstream and a reference point for “green” beauty for small, medium, and big brands. On top of this trend, there are regulatory changes on the horizon. The EU Green Claims Directive is expected to be finalized and enforced in the next few years. This directive will ban generic claims like natural. This will allow only sustainability labels based on third-party certification schemes.
Thus, it makes perfect sense as a formulator to become more familiar with the standard sooner rather than later. This is because formulating according to the COSMOS standard is more complex than conventional formulating.
Find out how the latest version of COSMOS certification helps to better formulate your cosmetics.
The Latest COSMOS Version — Criteria & Framework
The latest version of the standard is 4.1. This explains the key criteria behind it and the framework to formulate as per the following product certification schemes:
- COSMOS Natural — It has the lion's share of a number of certified beauty products.
- COSMOS Organic — It has more requirements. This is about the minimum organic percentages and compulsory organic ingredients. However, this level of certification is more attractive to consumers.
Meaning of COSMOS Organic and COSMOS Natural
(Source: COSMOS Standard)1
The current number of certified ingredients (ingredients with organic content) is 13,361. The number of COSMOS-approved ingredients is 10,064. This makes it easy to find ingredients suitable for the standard. There are raw material suppliers who have registered several ingredients. This makes it easier for the formulators. Such suppliers include:
There are several cosmetic applications possible. This includes
skincare,
haircare,
SPF,
soaps, and
color cosmetics. However, it is important to have a realistic development strategy aligned with the marketing team. It is also important to make key decisions with realistic expectations.
The COSMOS certification applies to ingredients, formulas, packaging, and manufacturing facilities. This makes it a rather comprehensive standard for green beauty products.
How to best formulate according to COSMOS?
I have been formulating according to this standard from the early days of my career. I will be sharing my pearls of wisdom in my
online course on COSMOS and explain the standard from a formulator's point of view. This will help you save a lot of time, hassle, and mistakes.
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The topics covered are:
- An introduction to the standard
- Key criteria behind the standard
- Ingredient categories and numbers explained with examples
- Update on the last version of the standard
- Restrictions and calculations behind COSMOS Organic and COSMOS Natural, with examples
- Requirements for manufacturing facilities and packaging
- Examples of labeling and claims
- What applications are easier to develop?
- Decision-making tree
- Conclusions and live Q&A
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