We often wonder, what really are the meanings of the terms organic, natural, vegan, or cruelty-free, especially when they have not been defined by an authoritative body like the FDA. First of all it is important to understand that the cosmetics in the US market are Not FDA-approved, but FDA-regulated. This means, the US Food and Drug Administration does not recommend any product available for use by the common people, but certainly restrict the ways in which they are manufactured.
On the other hand, the definition of the term ‘makeup’ has changed dramatically down the decades, and at present, there is no hard and fast rule to get your makeup done and sport a new look. Each one of you can have your own way of thinking and have yourself ‘made up’ and present yourself at a party, a show, or just anywhere as per your choice, without hurting anyone.
More interestingly, whenever you visit the cosmetic store or a shopping mall, you will probably run confused between the shelves loaded with hundreds of “natural products” with claims like ‘organic’, ‘natural’, ‘vegan’, or ‘cruelty-free’.
However, before you try to get close to Mother Earth by using certain types of makeup brands, it’d be wise to understand how ‘natural’ natural actually is, or at least, have the correct knowhow about vegan and cruelty-free cosmetics.
In a generic sense, organic makeups are manufactured using ingredients that are certified as ‘organic’ by a certifying institution or organization. Officially, an organic ingredient is an ingredient that was produced devoid of the use of synthetic chemicals.
Organic cosmetics are expected to be manufactured from the choicest natural (mostly herbal) components derived from flowers, leaves, and/or other plant parts so that the end product does not tend to affect the skin in any way (including rashes, irritation, redness, etc.), as opposed to the chemical-based cosmetics, giving you the best care possible.
Practically, natural makeup has no basic difference with organic makeup, and we often see various labels mentioning products as ‘natural’, especially those that are traditional beauty items. Have you ever wondered what it really means? As a simple explanation we can say, it means that the product in question is made of a minimum of 95% naturally-available ingredients and qualify to certification under the USDA standards.
Under this particular category, there are also products that read ‘Made with Natural __’, and this in turn means that they contain ingredients that have been produced at least 70% naturally.
Many of you cosmetics consumers must have noticed the tiny rabbit on your makeup product’s label. This symbol signifies that the product has been certified by the ‘Leaping Bunny’ program, which means that none of the ingredients used in that particular product have been tested in animals in the entire process of production, nor after the manufacturing process of the product was finished.
This trademark explains the nature of product testing and not the product’s ingredients used. Such a labeling started from ethical consciousness; however, this doesn’t mean that the finished product was made or manufactured naturally.
Labeling a cosmetic product as ‘vegan’ means the same as it is for ‘vegan diet’, or in other words, it means that the product in question is not made of any kind of animal-based ingredients including fat, milk, and honey.
Such labels, however, does not necessarily mean that the product is free from chemical compounds, or has not been tested on animals (i.e., cruelty-free).
At present, some of the top popular natural, organic, vegan or cruelty-free companies are extending their compassionate hands in support of Mother Nature. Some of them are:
In recent years, consumer demand for naturally-made cosmetics has risen at double-digit rates, while in a similar manner, certified ‘natural’ cosmetics are also scoring higher than their synthetic counterparts.
Hence, to conclude, we must say that, if you’re one of the ethical beauty users who are quite particular and specific about what you put on your body or face, it is wise that you do not keep blind trust on just the labels used on the cosmetic brands. It’s rather safe for you, if you understand that terms like ‘natural’, ‘vegan’ or ‘cruelty-free’ cannot be interchangeably used. Hence, it is even better if you have a little knowledge about the ingredients used, and go through the lists carefully given on the products’ labels, or can make sure that the products have been certified by organizations like The Vegan Society, PETA, etc.
