Certified Organic CosmeticsCertified organic cosmetics vs. organic cosmetics. Is there a difference? Absolutely! Here's how organic cosmetics (both certified and not), organic body care and the best natural skin care products benefit wellness—both yours and that of the environment. Organic Cosmetics vs. Certified Organic Cosmetics For a cosmetic (or any other organic product for that matter) to become a certified organic cosmetic it has to be reviewed and certified by an independent third party organization. 
That means to fall under the certified organic cosmetics designation, beauty product manufacturers have to comply with stringent guidelines on ingredients and processing. Everything from the way ingredients are grown, to the harvesting method, to manufacturing, packaging and transport are part of the organic certification process. Here, however, is the tricky part. While it is possible to produce most skin and hair care products in a certified organic version, creating organic makeup is a little more challenging. First, in order to be certified organic, ingredients have to be grown or raised (i.e. herbs, botanicals, nut and seed oils, beeswax). As many ingredients in makeup—zinc oxide or mica for example—are not grown, meeting the dual goals of producing a cosmetic and meeting certification guidelines becomes impossible. Under guidelines for most organic certification organizations, certified organic products must contain a minimum of 95% certified organic ingredients. That means any product that contains more than 5% of even a naturally-sourced, synthetic chemical-free ingredient such as minerals, clay or baking soda, cannot legally be called certified organic. Because most natural foundations, blushes, lip creams, concealers, bare minerals, mascaras and masks contain more than 5% non-grown, and therefore non-able to be certified organic, ingredients, the best option with makeup products is to find a good quality organic line. What does that look like?
PS When I first started using certified organic skin care products and organic cosmetics, I thought I would have to sacrifice quality in order to take care of my skin and the environment. Not so. Be sure to source true natural mineral makeup with certified organic ingredients that nurture your skin while providing great colours and lasting performance. You may have to try a few brands—my hands down favourite is the Miessence line—but keep looking until you are truly satisfied. With the best organic makeup, the choice is no longer "looking good" or "saving your health and the earth"; you actually get to do both. If you haven't already, be sure to check out Begin Within Natural Skincare's other Makeup and Organic Information pages: Start with Organic Makeup then Organic Body Care Soon there will be additional cosmetic and organic information. Interested? Sign up for the RSS feed and be notified when new website content is posted. Return from Certified Organic Cosmetics to Organic Makeup
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