There are many certifications and labels in the natural cosmetics sector. It can sometimes be difficult to find your way around and even if they are not all perfect, they have the merit of having made cosmetics evolve towards healthier and cleaner formulations.

To make it easier for you to read and understand, here are the main labels that you will find on our products and their main characteristics.

You will find their respective labels and certifications on each of our products in the 'More Info' section on the product sheet.

ORGANIC AND NATURAL LABELS

Cosmébio, Cosmos Natural and Cosmos Organic

Cosmébio is above all an association of manufacturers of natural cosmetics who wanted to concretize their ecological values ​​in a charter. To bear the Cosmébio label, a product must be manufactured by a company that is a member of the association and its formula must have been certified organic by the Ecocert or Qualité France standards.

Cosmébio offers 3 different labels :

• Cosmébio: Logo indicating that the cosmetic is organic according to the first specifications created by the association:
  • 95% of ingredients of natural origin on the total product,
  • 95% minimum organic ingredients on all plants
  • 10% minimum organic ingredients throughout the product (water and minerals considered non-organic because they are not grown)
• Cosmos Natural: Logo indicating that the cosmetic is natural according to the current COSMOS specifications
  • Ingredients of petrochemical origin are limited (according to a list of authorized ingredients with maximum dosage). The product must contain at least 95% natural ingredients.
• Cosmos Organic: Logo indicating that the cosmetic is organic according to the current COSMOS specifications
  • As with Cosmos Natural, 95% of the ingredients must be of natural origin.
  • 95% minimum organic ingredients on all ingredients that can be organic (such as plants, beeswax, milk, etc.)
  • Additionally, the total product must contain at least 20% organic ingredients (water and minerals are considered non-organic, since they are not grown).

Ecocert

• A biodegradable or recyclable nature of the packaging,
• The use of ingredients from renewable resources,
• The use of ingredients processed using environmentally friendly processes,
• A minimum threshold of 95% of natural ingredients or those of natural origin and from organic farming.

Prohibited : GMOs, Parabens, Phenoxyethanol, Nanoparticles, Silicones, PEG, Synthetic perfumes and dyes, Ingredients tested or derived from animals (except those they produce naturally: milk, honey, etc.).

Ecocert offers two types of labels to qualify an environmentally friendly cosmetic product:

• The Organic Cosmetics label:
  • the formula must be composed of at least 95% plant ingredients from organic farming,
  • the total ingredients that make up the formula must come from organic farming for a minimum of 10%.
• The Ecological Cosmetics label:
  • the formula must be composed of at least 50% plant ingredients from organic farming
  • the total ingredients that make up the formula must come from organic farming for a minimum of 5%.

In all cases, at least 95% of the total ingredients must be natural or of natural origin.

Nature and Progress

The "Nature et Progrès" logo is not defined as a label but rather as a mention that is obtained following successive checks carried out by an association of professionals and consumers. Very comprehensive, the "Nature et Progrès" specifications are particularly demanding and concern producers who are very committed to ecology.

Controlled by an independent third party, this label guarantees that ingredients of plant and animal origin are 100% organic. Synthetic ingredients, nanoparticles and GMOs are prohibited.

The following are authorized :

• Only raw materials obtained using simple physical or chemical processes are taken into account.
• Plant ingredients must come from:
• Organic farming: ingredients of plant and animal origin (honey, milk, etc.) are 100% organic.
• Wild harvesting while respecting the preservation of ecosystems; (endangered species are prohibited).

The charter nevertheless authorizes the use of certain components such as water, alcohol, certain natural colorants, a wide range of ecological preservatives.

Prohibited : petrochemical ingredients, synthetic ingredients (except in rare cases), perfumes other than essential oils, synthetic dyes, palm oil, nanoparticles, GMOs are prohibited.

What are the conditions for being validated?

A brand can label its organic products Nature & Progrès if at least 70% of its cosmetic products meet the technical criteria of the charter.

Slow Cosmetics

The Slow Cosmétique label is an award given once a year to brands whose formulas are "clean", i.e. free of any synthetic or controversial ingredients. The Slow Cosmétique label also adds the notion of "Reasonable Marketing": this means that the brand does not encourage overconsumption or false promises.

Independent of any existing "organic" label, the Slow Cosmetics Mention is an ecological and ethical approach with at the heart of its approach the promotion of a natural, healthy and reasonable mode of consumption of cosmetics.

The Slow Cosmétique label awards stars to the winning brands :

• 3 stars: the brand meets more than 90% of the criteria of the Slow Cosmetics charter. The formulas are clean and organic and the marketing is really reasonable. In addition, the manufacturer controls at least one stage of production and real local and artisanal know-how is present.
• 2 stars: the brand meets more than 75% of the criteria of the Slow Cosmetics charter. The formulas are clean and favor organic products and the marketing is reasonable. Real creative and artisanal know-how is present.
• 1 star: the brand meets more than 60% of the criteria of the Slow Cosmetics charter. The formulas are cleaner than the market average.

Mahalo is recognized by Slow Cosmétique as an official Slow Cosmétique corner of the Association.

Soil Association

Soil Association is an institution that brings together different stakeholders such as farmers, scientists, manufacturers and consumers, who want to commit to the promotion of organic products. Created in 1946 in England, it was originally founded to speak out against intensive agriculture and the use of pesticides.

The standards on which the Soil Association certification is based require a maximum of ingredients from organic farming and a minimum of non-organic raw materials, permitted only if their organic equivalent is not available.

The Soil Association also has a list of banned ingredients, which includes: parabens, silicones, formaldehyde releasers, PEGs, GMOs, petrochemical derivatives and certain irritating surfactants.

The association also has its own certification body, which defines two levels:

• First level: products containing more than 95% of ingredients from organic farming. They can display the “UK Soil Association Organic” logo on their packaging.
• Second level: products containing less than 95% of ingredients from organic farming. In this case, the “UK Soil Association Organic” logo cannot be used. Only the wording “Organic” is allowed, ingredient by ingredient.

BDIH

The BDIH is a German association of manufacturers of medicines, food supplements and cosmetics that has developed a guideline for controlled natural cosmetics.

Products bearing the BDIH label must contain a maximum of plant-based ingredients in organic quality, ingredients not tested on animals and resulting from gentle chemical processes.

Their list of prohibited ingredients includes silicones, colorants, synthetic flavors, and petroleum derivatives.

There are 2 logos :

• BDIH Organic: minimum 95% of ingredients that can be certified organic are organic. This includes, for example, vegetable oils, perfumes, etc. but does not include water and minerals.
• BDIH Natural: less than 95% of certifiable ingredients are organic.

Eco-guarantee

Ecogarantie is a Belgian label that is issued to products from manufacturers of the Bioforum association that meet the strict specifications defined by Ecogarantie and that have been checked by one of the 3 certification bodies with which the association works.

The Ecogarantie specifications do not tolerate any allogens, Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), GMOs or products from petrochemicals.

Natrue

Natrue is an international non-profit organisation headquartered in Brussels. Its ambition is to offer a harmonised label for natural cosmetics.

This label favors natural ingredients, limits ingredients of petrochemical and processed origin and excludes synthetic perfumes and dyes, silicone, GMOs, etc.

The Natrue label offers 3 levels of certification :

• Biocosmetics: at least 95% of natural ingredients come from controlled organic cultivation and/or controlled wild harvesting.
• Partly organic cosmetics: the percentage drops to a minimum of 70%.
• Natural cosmetics: natural raw materials are preferably organic. This level allows a greater share of processed products of natural origin.

Quality France

Qualité-France has chosen to develop a standard that distinguishes between organic cosmetics and ecological cosmetics.

This label offers two levels of certification:

• organic cosmetics that contain at least 10% of ingredients from organic farming,
• eco-friendly cosmetics that contain less than 10% organic ingredients.

In both cases, the products must contain at least 95% ingredients of natural origin.

VEGAN & CRUELTY FREE LABELS

The European Vegan Expertise label: EVE

Guarantees :

• the absence of animal testing
• the absence of animal flesh
• the absence of ingredients of animal origin in the product
• the absence of ingredients of animal origin in the packaging
• the absence of animal testing in foreign markets
• ingredients from organic vegan farming (for EVE VEGAN level 02)
• control audits (method of obtaining: audit of compliance with the EVE VEGAN standard)

PETA’s Cruelty Free and Cruelty Free & Vegan label

Guarantees :

• the absence of animal testing
• the absence of animal flesh (for the “cruelty free and vegan” logo)
• the absence of ingredients of animal origin in the product (for the “cruelty free and vegan” logo)
• the absence of ingredients of animal origin in the packaging (for the “cruelty free and vegan” logo)
• the absence of animal testing in foreign markets

Does not guarantee :

• ingredients from organic farming vegan
• control audits (obtaining this label is done via a contract to be signed with supporting documents and payment of a license)

The Cruelty Free International label: Leaping Bunny

Guarantees :

• the absence of animal testing
• the absence of animal testing in foreign markets
• control audits (carried out by independent bodies chosen by the Coalition for Consumer Information in Cosmetics)

Does not guarantee :

• the absence of animal flesh
• the absence of ingredients of animal origin in the product
• the absence of ingredients of animal origin in the packaging
• ingredients from organic farming vegan

Sources : Book “Adoptez la Slow Cosmétique” by Julien Kaibeck and the sites of the various labels and certifiers cited.