The difference between organic, natural and non-toxic beauty products
Once you’ve made the decision to switch to a natural beauty routine, you’ll be faced with buzzwords and labels such as organic, natural and non-toxic. But what do they really mean? We spoke to product education manager for Nude by Nature, Emma Jose, to help us understand all of those green beauty labels.
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What does it mean when a product is ‘natural’?
“A common definition would be that a natural product is made only with ingredients derived from nature and formulated without any synthetic (artificial) ingredients,” says Emma. It might surprise you that the term natural is actually unregulated.
What’s the difference between an ‘organic’ and a ‘certified organic’ product?
According to Emma, the word organic is not regulated in Australia. This means that beauty products can claim to be organic without any official accreditation or claim to be made with certified organic ingredients when only one of their ingredients is certified, even if these rest of their ingredients are synthetic. “Organic brands should be accredited and carry a logo of a recognised organisation such as Australian Certified Organic (ACO),” she says.
Some labels claim that their product is ‘chemical-free,’ what does this mean?
“The term ‘chemical free’ is often used by cosmetic and skincare brands to highlight that a product is free of synthetic (artificial) chemicals,” explains Emma.
What does ‘plant-based’ mean?
The term plant-based refers to products that are formulated with botanical ingredients that originate from plants like roots, flowers, fruits, leaves or seeds. But just because a product is labelled plant-based, doesn’t necessarily mean it’s natural. “While these products may contain a percentage of ingredients that are of plant origin, it’s possible the remaining ingredients are of synthetic origin,” says Emma. When in doubt, It’s always best to check the label.
How do we know if a product is really cruelty-free?
A cruelty-free brand should be accredited by an internationally-recognised cruelty-free program or organisation such as PETA, Leaping Bunny or Choose Cruelty Free. “Formally accredited brands must adhere to specific development and distribution criteria, and must also pass strict review and approval processes to prove their cruelty-free commitment and become acknowledged as genuine cruelty-free advocates,” says Emma.
Can we trust ‘vegan’ product labels?
Unless the label is certified vegan, you’re putting your trust in the brand to correctly declare if the product is vegan or not. If the product is vegan, it must be free from any animal products, animal by-products or animal derivatives. But according to Emma, the biggest misconception is that vegan products are always natural. “Not all vegan products are natural or plant-based, these product attributes are vastly different from one another,” she says.
Did you find this article helpful? Do you use any organic, natural or chemical-free beauty products?
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Awesome article. I need to make note.
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Plant-based was the real eye-opener here, thanks
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Lots of invaluable information about beauty talk and some meanings thank you Beauty Heaven.
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Very informative ... there is a lot to learn on this topic!
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Thanks for the clarification including the product having vegan certification on them
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Very Informative article.
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Organic is best but chemical free is also a good thing for the skin
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Thank you for this informative article. Will assist me when I am making my beauty regime purchases.
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Definitely need to be thorough reading the ingredients these days
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The word natural is used so loosely the only way to make sure is to read the ingredients list.
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Very interesting. Clearly the use of these terms needs to be regulated so consumers have a chance to decipher whether the product is what they think it is or not.
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They absolutely should be, this is a great point
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It's a bit concerning the word "natural" isn't regulated. Will remind me to check the ingredients labels of products more carefully. I'm sure the word would help boost sales for some products.
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To be honest I do not look labels such as "cruelty-free" , "natural" as they can be misleading. I go straight to ingredient list. This tells more. I got to try one cream that has cruelty-free label stuck on it. And one of the ingredients is...Emu oil. So, to "extract" oil from the emu, you need to kill him/her. Er...not really "cruelty-free"
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That’s a great point! They meant cruelty free as in not tested on animals, not caring that there were ingredients which were derived from cruelty! A real eye opener thanks Yohanna.
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Everything made should be organic that we put in or on our bodies
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I use porze products. They are a new social enterprise which recycle coffee grounds to make body scrubs and soaps. They are really transparent with their ingredients listing and are vegan friendly and against animal testing - to the point that they donate profits to animal welfare organisations.
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All of my skin care products do not contain man-made chemicals, petroleum by-products etc. Most of my perfumes are natural-based. I still love and buy makeup with synthetic ingredients, but I also have some more natural-based cosmetics.
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A good article and very helpful as not all products are exactly what they claim to be. I try to use natural products when I can.
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Thank you so much for this informative article.
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"natural" is a word that is too over-used for the wrong reasons that it really doesn't mean anything anymore.
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i find you pay more for more natural or organic products, the more natural it truly is, the really cheap ones which say natural are just saying it
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Best to read labels carefully
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