Cosmetics Industry
Cosmetics get a “sustainability” makeover The beauty products industry is making a statement that beauty is indeed skin-deep by addressing sustainability first-hand, says Angelica Buan in this report.
Microbeads are found in cosmetics and personal care products such as toothpaste, sunscreen, hair gel and shower gel
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JUNE / JULY 2017
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o longer a mere hodgepodge of colours and beauty enhancement tools, the cosmetics industry is also addressing environmental, quality and safety issues that are privy to its consumers. The multi-million dollar cosmetics market covers various products such as skin care, hair care, deodorants, makeup and fragrances. Allied Research estimates that the global cosmetics market may reach US$429.8 billion by 2022, at a CAGR of 4.3% from 2016 to 2022. Driving this growth are firms that are investing in technologies for making beauty products safer, with better quality, and are targeting market-specific needs. Given the high sales calibre of cosmetics, the industry is a competitive one, thus wagering on sustainability can boost brand as well as consumer appeal. Eco-friendly cosmetics: no more microbeads The cosmetics industry has been embroiled in the marine litter issue over the use of microplastics or microbeads, especially in personal care products, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Program. Though it may only represent a small percentage in total, the repeated release (into the oceans) of microbeads could increase this amount over time, if unabated. Microplastics/microbeads are spheres of plastic (usually PP and PE) less than 0.5 mm in size that are added to personal care and cleaning products including cosmetics, sunscreens and fillers to give them a smooth texture. However, they are too small to be removed by sewage filtration systems and so end up in rivers and oceans, where they are ingested by birds, fish and other marine life. It is estimated that a single shower can result in 100,000 plastic particles entering the ocean, contributing to the 8 million tonnes/year of plastic that enters the ocean. The role of these microbeads has resulted in the culmination of several initiatives, such as the signing of the US Microbead Free Waters Act, that will ban microbeads in beauty and cleansing products starting this July. European personal care association, Cosmetics Europe, has also urged its members to halt the sales of microbeadscontaining cosmetics by 2020. Following its 2016 survey, Cosmetics Europe found a “substantial 82% reduction in the use of plastic microbeads between 2012 and 2015.” As a result of recent campaigning by environmental groups, the UK government has pledged to ban plastic microbeads in 2017. The ten-member ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), home to some 600 million consumers, is also aiming at reducing microplastics in cosmetics, according to a report published by the Philippine Information Agency, which said that non-government organisations in Southeast Asia are in discussions on this. An online petition at Avaaz, a US-based civic organisation, has made the rounds among member countries of the ASEAN, in line with the ASEAN Cosmetic Directive of the 26th ASEAN Cosmetic Committee Meeting held in Cambodia recently, to effect a regional ban on microplastics. The petition is based on a 2016 UN Environment Assembly resolution underscoring an urgent response against the harmful effects of plastic litter and microplastics in the marine environment. Proponents include Indonesia’s Balifokus, Malaysia’s Consumers’ Association of Penang, Philippines’s EcoWaste Coalition,