BY NANCY JEFFRIES GLOBAL report

natural products

Skin Care

L’O
CC
and Cosmetics,

ITA
E N
Naturally!
The global market for natural cosmetics is forecast to grow 9%
annually through 2008, when it will reach $5.8 billion. To meet
growing demands for effective naturals, companies are peeking
in at all points of the globe to source ingredients.

P
omegranates, grapes and honey may
sound good enough to eat, but in
today’s beauty biz, they mean health
and hydration for hair and skin, and new
possibilities for a growing market.
Antioxidant extracts and energy-packed
actives are big business with natural appeal.
According to Euromonitor, companies are
increasingly incorporating natural ingredients
into products to distinguish themselves from
the competition. In fact, it’s become a key
element in many marketing strategies—and
for good reason. Euromonitor puts the global
market for natural cosmetics at $3.9 billion,
and forecasts the market to grow 9% annually
through 2008 to $5.8 billion. This trend is
evident in the number of natural product
launches.
Euromonitor notes that as part of a trend
for health and wellness, consumers are
adopting a more holistic approach to beauty
care. Natural ingredients are appearing in
all sectors and categories, and new benefits
increasingly are being touted as key to cell
renewal, antiaging and repair.
As the call for more control over what
can be touted as natural and with savvy
customers willing to question claims, the
growing naturals market does mean a
marketer can slap a natural label on a product
and wait for the sales. The demand is there,
but consumers want claims substantiated
and demand the efficacy of non-naturals. To
meet these demands, companies are peeking
in at all points of the globe to source effective
naturals. From South America to Australia,
to the depths of the oceans between, the
hunt is on for naturals to suit the needs of
today’s sophisticated consumer. Along with
that quest for the new, suppliers of natural
ingredients continue to champion the long-
ago proven—such as honey and aloe.
Remedies and Raw Materials
Marine-based ingredients and flowers with
anti-inflammatory properties continue
to gain popularity in a variety of skin care
treatment products. On the raw material
supplier side, Tri-K Industries recently
introduced Cehami PF, an entirely natural
active plant extract derived from Centipeda
cunninghamii—a member of the daisy
family indigenous to the Australian outback.
According to the company, it was used for
centuries by the Australian Aborigines as
a remedy for skin complaints and other
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
• REMEDIES AND RAW MATERIALS
Skin and hair remain two of the most
popular areas for treatment with naturals,
and naturals with anti-inflammatory
properties continue to gain popularity.
• EVEN HORMONES REAP THE BENEFITS
As the production of key hormones decline
in aging consumers, plant-derived
phytoestrogen can be used to restore the
skin’s vibrancy.
• NOURISHING NATURALS FOR HAIR
Hair care has seen a surge in the use of
plant, nut and fruit extracts for a variety
of treatment products, and ingredients
are being sourced from both land and sea.
• A GARDEN OF EARTHLY DELIGHTS
Natural beauty boosters range from
the wildly esoteric to the longtime
comforters, and ingredients that come
from nature continue to appeal across
demographic lines.

www.GCImagazine.com Global Report n Natural Products 31

GCI0610_GR_Jeffries.irv.indd 31 9/20/06 8:17:51 AM

 GLOBAL report
RENE FURTERER
ailments, and possesses potent anti-
inflammatory and restorative properties.
Cehami PF was developed to capture
the healing and soothing properties of
the herb for cosmetic use. According to
the company, it has proven to reduce
skin inflammation and increase cell
regeneration. Tri-K notes that it increases
32 Global Report ■ Natural Products
GCI0610_GR_Jeffries.fcx.indd 32
natural products
efficacy in a wide range of cosmetic
formulations—including products for the
treatment of acne, self-tanners, pre- and
post-sun treatments, antiaging products,
products for sensitive skin, shampoos and
conditioners.
Skin and hair remain two of the most
popular areas for treatment with naturals
or naturally derived sources. “In hair care
and skin care, optimization of color for both
skin and hair is a huge market,” says Sonia
Dawson, marketing executive, botanicals,
Croda. Nut extracts such as Croda’s Castanha
do Brasil, from the company’s Crodamazon
line of Amazonian oils, contain juglones that
have been shown to work in combination
with tanning actives such as DHA to create
a more bronze color. Further, the company
found that the same effect can be achieved in
hair care applications. “The oil improved hair
color washfastness by 30% when used in a
hair color dye formulation,” said Dawson.
Dawson notes that with the increased
popularity of cosmetic procedures such as
Botox and tummy tucks, there’s a growing
trend toward more natural, less invasive
alternatives. Crodarom, the botanical extracts
division of Croda, recently launched the
Phytotals line of botanicals that features
performance-specific plant complexes
obtained from various plants chosen for their
complementary cosmetic activity. Phytotal AW
for antiaging has shown to reduce fine lines
and wrinkles, Phytotal FM is designed to
enhance skin tone and elasticity, Phytotal OS
regulates oily skin and refines pores, and
Phytotal AI is an anti-irritant.
Naturopathica is a company that utilizes
a host of natural ingredients sourced from
partner farms that specialize in harvesting
such crops as aloe, lemon verbena, German
chamomile and orange blossom. According
to Naturopathica’s founder Barbara Close,
there is a vast range of therapeutic benefits
attributed to essential oils and other
ingredients.
“Many times our preferred choice of herb
is ethically wild crafted, that is, (herbs that)
GCI October 2006
9/20/06 11:23:00 AM

“We believe that consumers
are becoming more aware
of what natural means—and
doesn’t mean—and the
associated benefits.”
—Barbara Close
are literally handpicked in the wild, not
cultivated and harvested from a farm,”
said Close. “We believe that consumers
are becoming more aware of what natural
means—and doesn’t mean—and the
associated benefits.” She notes that natural
consumers span age and gender, including
baby boomers returning to traditional
therapies, and younger consumers
knowledgeable about ingredients and also
www.GCImagazine.com Global Report n Natural Products   33
GCI0610_GR_Jeffries.irv.indd 33
skeptical about claims. “All in all, they are a
discerning bunch,” says Close.
Naturopathica’s Hydrating Anti-Oxidant
Mask, contains grape seed extract to repair
existing damage from free radicals; aloe vera
gel, for moisturizing and anti-inflammatory
properties; sea algae extract, with skin
softening properties; ascorbyl palmitiate,
and tocopheryl acetate, vitamin E, derived
from wheat germ, to enhance stability of
the skin’s immune system. The mask is
designed to protect skin from environmental
aggressors and revitalize dry complexions.
Fruits and Plants
Firm and Hydrate
To maintain healthy hair, keep skin hydrated
and battle environmental stressors that
contribute to premature aging, there’s a
crop of protectants that can readily be seen
as the new wonders of nature’s miraculous
storehouse.
Fruits and plants are being utilized
in products that are designed to firm
and hydrate the skin, and plant-derived
phytoestrogen and glycosaminoglycan,
said to improve elasticity, have been used
to address concerns associated with dry
or hormonally imbalanced skin. Murad’s
Resurgence Renewal Home Facial Kit
was designed to combat hormonal
aging. “As women age, the production
of key hormones, such as estrogen and
progesterone, begin to decline, leaving
other hormones, such as testosterone,
more dominant,” said Howard Murad,
MD, a dermatologist, CEO and founder,
Murad Inc. “This hormonal imbalance
results in changes in the skin.” Murad’s
home facial kit combines a blend of plant-
derived phytoestrogens—which are facial
hair growth inhibitors, blemish fighters,
antioxidants and firming agents—that
work to restore vibrancy to the skin and
help it stay balanced.
9/20/06 8:18:06 AM
 GLOBAL report natural products
Nourishing Naturals
for Hair
Hair care has seen a
surge in the use of plant, nut
and fruit extracts for a variety
of treatment products. Klorane
Laboratories, for example, launched
Klorane Beautifying Shampoo with
Pomegranate Extract for Color Treated
hair. The product is rich in tannins designed
to fix colorants to keratin for longer-lasting
color. It also contains a vegetal lipoprotein
for repairing action, as well as a natural
polysaccharide to moisturize and protect.
Karite Intense Nourishing Shampoo from
Rene Furterer contains shea, the natural
active karate, to nourish hair, and 12%
nutritive oils based on shea and coprah oils
to provide nutrition for scalp and hair. The
new formula incorporates phospholipids
for in-depth action, and a cationic
TS
polymer for detangling, smoothing and UC
ROD
protection of hair shafts. LP
URA
Jason Natural Products recently AT
NN
SO
introduced Natural Salon Hair JA
Care to volumize, moisturize,
style and treat hair without
chemicals or moisture-stripping when it comes to natural products that boast
cleansers. The company has sourced healing properties. It’s 100% natural and
ingredients from both land and sea has moisturizing, softening and stimulating
to formulate natural products designed
properties. In addition, honey works in
to address issues inherent in chemically
a variety of cleansing and bath and body
treated hair. Jason’s Plumeria & Sea Kelp
formulations. L’Occitane, for example,
Hair Moisturizing System includes natural
has developed a honey blend composed of
marine botanicals to moisturize, reduce
propolis, honey and royal jelly that is said to
frizz and add shine. Its Mint & Rose Intense
strengthen, nourish and soothe the skin.
Moisture Treatment treats dry hair with shea
In general, ingredients that come from
butter and avocado oil, while rose flower oil
nature continue to hold a special appeal
nourishes the scalp.
across demographic lines. Customers
seeking function as well as environmental
Garden of Earthly Delights friendliness are gravitating, naturally,
to ingredients drawn from ecologically
Natural beauty boosters range from the responsible sources. This is not to say that
wildly esoteric to the longtime comforters high-tech innovation is being overshadowed
with homegrown appeal that has been by natural alternatives, but thoughtful
passed down through the consumers who desire those benefits while
generations and across remaining true to their belief in sustainable
cultures. Honey resources will increasingly find more
continues to be complementary solutions. n GCI
an ingredient
of choice
NANCY JEFFRIES is a contributing
editor for GCI magazine, covering the industry
from her New York vantage. Jeffries has been
in the publishing business for more than
20 years. Her introduction to the cosmetics
and personal care industry began as editor
of GCI from 1997-2000. bnjcasa@aol.com

34 Global Report n Natural Products

Natural Products GCI October 2006

GCI0610_GR_Jeffries.irv.indd 34 9/20/06 8:18:25 AM