The CosmeticDays 2014 are the first event providing a 360° view on sustainable cosmetics. The program of this two-day conference includes a round-up of the scientific advances, market trends and what consumers want… for example, of course, "free-from" cosmetics.
A contribution by CosmeticDays
Since 2005, the claim "free from" has been demanded by consumers and is ubiquitous in the cosmetic sections. Introduced with parabens, the list of potentially harmfull substances, rightly or wrongly, is growing constantly : phtalates, silicones, almost all preservatives, GMOs, glycol, aluminum salts, etc…
The precautionary principle, recognized by the French constitution and the Maastricht Treaty, vouch for this classification, even before the release of the scientific studies results. In addition to these safety criteria may be also added social and environmental considerations as the non-use of palm oil.
In the history of the cosmetics industry, very few concepts had such an impact on formulators in such a short time. The challenge of formulating, or reformulating products, in the face of this new requirements leads to innovative solutions.
The first challenge of the modern formulator is preservation. In addition the traditional mix of preservative substances comes a new thought on the production tool, GMPs procedures, packaging operations, a technology watch on the new packaging materials, additional physical processes such as UHT, tubes and caps providers etc.
Nowadays, preservation needs an overall approach that gathers several branches of industry.
The second challenge of the scientist formulating "free …
