Lately, it seems more and more of us are looking for ways to live lightly on this beautiful earth. Artists, small businesses and home crafters have been especially flexible and creative in the face of this surge in environmental passion—whether it’s through making it possible to buy more of what we need locally, by reducing unnecessary packaging, by upcycling or recycling old materials with new creative twists, or by giving folks the chance to be a part of the organic or handmade movement.
Maybe you’re like us. At Mirasol Farm, we always thought that organic was probably a good idea, but perhaps not always worth the extra bother or expense… then we became beekeepers. We learned about the perils faced by native pollinators (and our little honeymakers) in traditional agricultural practices—including the processes that deliver us of the base oils and botanicals we use in bath and body products. The issue of organic became more personal, and brought on a series of really hard decisions.
As consumers, it’s difficult for us sometimes to make sense of product labeling. And as crafters, it’s hard to find many organic ingredients—beeswax and lanolin, for example—and even harder to account for the extra cost in our bottom line!
But “organic” is quite the buzz word these days, and there’s a lot of confusing information out there. One friend said she heard that if you use any organic ingredients you could call your product “organic,” another thought that you had to use more than half organic ingredients to claim the label. We EGCG team members take quite a bit of honor in honestly and fairly labeling our offerings. In that spirit, here’s what we’ve learned about the labeling of organic personal care products.
Theoretically (or not so theoretically) a company could label a product “organic” that contains no organic ingredients at all, and be unlikely to get into trouble—unlike the agriculture industry, no one actively regulates organic claims on personal care products. However, several agencies inspect and certify products to display their organic seals: the USDA and the Natural Products Association, for example.
Here’s the skinny on the USDA organic regulations:
100% Organic—Products bearing this label must be made with 100% organic ingredients* and may display the USDA Organic seal.
Organic—These products must contain between 95–99% organic ingredients* and may display the USDA Organic seal.
Made with Organic Ingredients—Product packaging that reads “Made with Organic Ingredients” must contain between 70–94% organic ingredients*. These products will not bear the USDA Organic seal; instead, they may list up to three ingredients on the front of the packaging.
Other—Products with less than 70% organic ingredients* may only list organic ingredients on the information panel of the packaging. These products will not bear the USDA Organic seal.
* By weight, and not including water
[Adapted from http://www.tilth.org/files/certification/forms-and-help-documents/Labelling%20Grid.pdf]
So for now, savvy shoppers interested in products that are “all-natural” or “organic” must either look for a certification label, or look for a clear list of ingredients, inquire about any ingredients unfamiliar to them (or unpronounceable!), and decide for themselves if the complexion cream, shampoo, or lip balm they’re holding is as eco-friendly and skin-friendly as they want it to be.
Check out these groovy products made by EGCG team members that include organic ingredients.
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