The ICEA VEGAN certification follows a voluntary control scheme aimed at ascertaining the requirements expected by animal- and environment-conscious vegetarian and vegan consumers, who choose ICEA VEGAN-certified products because no raw material, process aid or auxiliary agent of animal or GMO origin is used either in the formulations or throughout the entire production cycle, ensuring traceability of the lot number and raw material producer.

ICEA ECO-BIO COSMETICS

Aspects that characterise ICEA-certified eco bio cosmetics include use of organic or spontaneously harvested raw materials, absence of organically and ecologically questionable ingredients, reduced environmental impact due to superfluous or non-recyclable packaging, and production with the most modern eco-compatible techniques.

The ICEA standard, the aim of which is “to supply accurate, comprehensive and transparent information on eco-organic cosmetics” and “to voice the greatest possible protection for consumer health”, lays down the requirements for achieving certification through a number of general provisions and a long list of prohibited substances (about 12,000).

The guiding criteria for exclusion are poor skin compatibility, poor environmental compatibility and completely synthetic origin. Among the ingredients that cannot be used are surfactants that are known to be aggressive and exhibiting poor skin compatibility; substances that can cause environmental and ecological damage; compounds that can give rise to carcinogenic substances; animal derivatives (collagen, placenta, etc.); silicones and silicone derivatives; acrylic polymers; synthetic dyes and a long list of preservatives.

The ICEA “ECO BIO COSMETICS” mark and the certification number mentioned on each product are a guarantee for consumers of rigorous ingredient selection and compliance with the ICEA standard regarding the raw materials that can be used as well as manufacturing and packaging processes.

COSMOS NATURAL-certified cosmetics are formulated in accordance with the International Standard for Organic and Natural Cosmetics and comply with the principles of “Green Chemistry” regarding raw material quality and origin, as well as manufacturing and packaging processes.

The COSMOS-standard (COSMetic Organic Standard) has been developed at the European level by five key European certification bodies: BDIH (Germany), COSMEBIO and ECOCERT (France), ICEA (Italy) and SOIL ASSOCIATION (United Kingdom). The aim of the standard is to define common requirements and definitions for organic and/or natural cosmetics and to encourage the following rules: establishing sustainable development; promoting the use of products from organic agriculture, and respecting biodiversity; using natural resources responsibly, and respecting the environment; using processing and manufacturing that are clean and respectful of human health and the environment; integrating and developing the concept of “Green Chemistry”.

The standard classifies the ingredients of a cosmetic product into 5 major categories – water, mineral ingredients, physically-processed agro-ingredients, chemically-processed agro-ingredients, other ingredients – and specifies origin and processing requirements for each category as well as modes and limits of use.

The standard covers two certification levels: COSMOS ORGANIC and COSMOS NATURAL, each one with its own certification rules, percentages of natural or organic content in the total finished product and precise directions for storage, manufacturing, packaging, labelling and communication. The standard also requires manufacturers to have a certified environmental quality management system.

The ORGANIC certification level implies the requirement to use a minimum percentage of organic ingredients in the formulation. On the other hand, the NATURAL certification level requires no minimum percentage. It still provides, however, for all the other requirements to be fulfilled.

As to product labelling, products under ORGANIC certification must indicate on the label the percentage of organic and natural origin ingredients in the total product and may also indicate the percentage of organic origin ingredients without water and minerals. In contrast, products under NATURAL certification must indicate on the label only the percentage of natural origin ingredients in the total product.

The COSMOS NATURAL signature and the percentage of natural origin ingredients in the total finished product mentioned on the packaging are a guarantee for consumers of compliance with the COSMOS-standard criteria relating to natural cosmetics.

ISO 16128

Guidelines on technical definitions and criteria for natural and organic cosmetic ingredients and products

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is the most important standard-setting organisation in the world. Founded on 23 February 1947, it is headquartered in Geneva (Switzerland) and has a membership of 164 countries worldwide.

ISO 16128:2016 is the technical standard that provides guidelines and criteria on how to calculate the natural/natural origin or organic/organic origin content of a given formulation, regardless of its overall content and taking into account all the ingredients – with no exclusions – that are legally allowed for use in cosmetics.

This is the standard used to calculate the different percentages of natural origin ingredients mentioned on the packaging of Lucens Color, Lucens Color Mask and the Eco Bio Cosmetics-certified products in the Lucens Care segment.

GREEN PLASTIC

Bottles, jars and labels used for the Lucens Umbria range are made from more than 80% Green PE.

Green PE or Green Polyethylene is chemically identical to polyethylene but the production process is different: ethylene (which is polymerized to form polyethylene) is not obtained from petroleum but comes from ethanol produced from sugarcane. Chemically it is a polyethylene, but it has the advantage of absorbing CO2 from the atmosphere during its production, significantly helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Indeed, it has been reported that it can absorb up to 2.5 metric tonnes of CO2 from the atmosphere for each tonne produced.

Green PE is made up of natural polymers (biopolymers), which are characteristic components of living organisms; these are mainly polysaccharides (cellulose, starch) and proteins (gluten, collagen, enzymes). The use of biopolymers is gaining popularity or even required by law due to increased awareness of the environment and waste recovery issues.

Green PE can be recycled in the same stream already established for traditional petroleum-based polyethylene.