scope:

These guidelines provide technical guidance on principles, definitions and criteria to address the natural and organic criteria for cosmetic ingredients and products. These are specific to the cosmetics sector, taking into account that most existing approaches written for the agricultural and food sector are not directly transferrable to cosmetics. They apply scientific judgment and offer principles towards a consistent logical framework for natural and organic cosmetic ingredients and products incorporating common approaches employed in existing references1. The purpose of these guidelines is to encourage wider choice of natural and organic ingredients in the formulation of a diverse variety of cosmetic products to encourage innovation. Natural and organic criteria for both cosmetic ingredients and products are addressed in the guidelines. In addition to natural and organic ingredients, other ingredient categories which may be necessary for natural and organic product development are defined with associated restrictions. The guidelines provide a technical approach to determine the natural and organic content of cosmetic products. It is important to highlight that product communication (e.g. claims and labelling), human safety, environmental safety and socio-economical considerations (e.g. fair trade) are outside of the scope of the guidelines. In addition, the characteristics of packaging materials are also not included in the guidelines. Existing regulatory requirements applicable for cosmetics must also be followed for natural and organic cosmetics.