Q: What is the difference between “Natural, Fair Trade, Organic and Green products?
This is something that always used to confuse me, so I will try and simplify things.
Organic products – this refers to the way that the ingredients in the beauty product are grown and processed. Certified organic ingredients or products mean that a body such as the Soil Association or EcoCert have certified that the ingredients and finished product have met its criteria and proved that the ingredient or product is definitely organic. If a product is not certified it isn’t necessarily a bad product, but if you want to be certain then you might want to stick to certified organic products. Different countries have different certification bodies.
For more info check out Ecocert and The Soil Association
Natural products – this means that the ingredients in the product are derived from natural ingredients like a plant source (shea butter or avocado oil are examples) and that they have retained their natural properties in the finished cosmetic product.
Fairtrade – the fair-trade mark is an independent consumer guarantee that farmers producing the ingredients contained in that beauty product are getting a good deal on pay and are receiving a fair, stable minimum price in return for their products. This benefits the farmers in the long run and gives back to the local community. For beauty products, all companies wishing to certify a product with the FAIRTRADE Mark must also have a producer partnership plan outlining how they additionally seek to support the producers of the ingredients they are buying.
The Fairtrade minimum price is based on farmers’ actual costs of sustainable production and if the market price is higher than the Fairtrade minimum price then traders must pay the market price.
To find out more check out the fairtrade foundations website here: http://www.fairtrade.org.uk/products/beauty_products/default.aspx
Green – Green basically covers those products that are Natural, Organic, Certified Organic and Eco friendly and fair trade but there are other considerations with regards to eco friendly beauty products, however, such as their actual production and packaging. There are some hand made products available which arguably have less environmental impact than those using machinery, and some products come with minimal packaging to reduce waste. You could also contact product manufacturers to find out about the company’s green credentials asking, for example, whether their products are tested on animals.
Q: What are the benefits of Organic?
A: Organic farming prohibits the use of toxic and persistent chemical pesticides and fertilisers. This helps to sustain the global health and well-being of our planet and also helps to protect our water supply.
The benefit to you is that none of those pesticides therefore end up in the end skincare product. The products retain more anti oxidants than their non-organic counterparts and anti oxidants are helpful to the skin as they attack the things that cause ageing.
Now this is a rather simplistic overview but since I am not an expert in the field and presumably neither are a lot of people who will read this I hope this is a helpful overview and easy to understand.
Sarah x