68 NATURALS
Using food ingredients in cosmetics: pros and cons
Caroline Recardo – Alchemy Ingredients
The use of food ingredients in cosmetics is not a new concept, and in fact the earliest cosmetic products were probably made from food ingredients. For example, egg yolk would have been used as a hair conditioner and vegetable oil as a moisturiser. There are some important differences
between food and cosmetic ingredients however, which need to be taken into account when formulating with them.
Why would formulators consider using a food ingredient? 1. Price The cost of cosmetic raw materials has increased considerably over the past few years and any savings that can be made would greatly help the manufacturing of cost effective finished cosmetic products. In the case of basic raw materials such as vegetable oils, the food and cosmetic grades may be identical and often come from the same source. It may also be easier to buy basic food
ingredients locally to the manufacturing site, leading to fresher material and fewer road miles travelled, therefore a lower carbon footprint for the finished product. As an example, a good quantity food grade xanthan gum can cost approximately one quarter of the price of an equivalent cosmetic/pharma grade with the same specification.
2. Provenance It may be important to a brand or product that the raw materials come from a specified source. This could be a country, farm or region and will add interest and provenance to a finished product. An example of this is Fair Trade cocoa butter,
where a specific region has been selected to source the material and a fair price given to farmers for it. This can also be important for organic sourcing, where specific farms need to be used to gain organic certification by one of the certifying bodies such as the Soil Association.
3. Interest Some food ingredients can provide an interesting texture or function in a cosmetic product that cannot be obtained with a cosmetic raw material. An example is banana puree, which is used in some hair conditioners and masks and provides texture, fragrance, moisturisation and colour. The equivalent cosmetic ingredient would not exist!
PERSONAL CARE October 2023
How similar are the food and cosmetic industries? Although there are some significant differences, the food and cosmetics industries are closely aligned. Firstly, the food industry generally uses ingredients that are natural, biodegradable and often vegetable-based, all good requirements for the cosmetic industry. In addition, food ingredients or additives are
safe to consume orally, meaning they have no or very low toxicity, and should not cause irritation or harm to the body. Although microbial loads and heavy metal contents can vary considerably for food ingredients compared to cosmetics, often values can be comparable. Another similarity is that both food and
cosmetics claim to have a nourishing effect on the body and contribute to wellness via nutrition or by adding moisturising ingredients to the skin or hair. Textures can also be comparable, for example creams, gels, pastes and solutions are all found in both food and cosmetics and are made using similar manufacturing techniques. Overall, there are many overlaps between the
food and cosmetic industries that mean there is a good suitability for food ingredients to be used in cosmetics safely and effectively.
Food regulations In this article, a detailed examination of the
regulatory comparison of food and cosmetics will not be given but further information can be obtained at
www.food.gov.uk and www.
cosmeticseurope.eu . A brief summary is given below.
Food In the UK, food and food ingredients are regulated by the Food Standards Agency and since the UK left the EU, a new regulatory framework is being set up along the same lines as the EU. In the US, it is regulated by the FDA. In summary, food ingredients should: ■ Be safe for human consumption in terms of heavy metals, microbiological limits and toxicity. ■ Be labelled appropriately. ■ Have any of the 14 named allergens stated clearly if they are present. ■ Make available the country of origin. ■ Ideally, have a specification, technical data sheet (TDS), product information pack and material safety data sheet (MSDS). ■ Be labelled with shelf-life information. Often have an ‘E’ number showing it is listed as safe in the EU. If a food additive or ingredient is only used
in food, feed or pharmaceuticals, then REACH regulation EC No. 1907/2006 does not apply (in practise most chemicals will be used in a number of industries).
www.personalcaremagazine.com
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