When it comes to product ingredients, what's the difference between ones that are certified organic or natural?

HollyBeth Anderson of HollyBeth’s Natural Luxury weighs in on this topic of the moment...

Confusion reigns among manufacturers and consumers on the current burning topic of “what is organic?” It appears that everyone is in agreement that “natural” means nothing.

It boils down to definition and as a member of the organic trade commission I can attest that there is controversy among the ranks. The current legislation is simply not clear. Mix this existing cornucopia with third party certifiers and it is a true goulash. We make our products with certified organic ingredient which means that we have proof that all of our ingredients have been sourced organically and, preferably, sourced locally.

If I understand correctly, there is tighter legislation on organic farming vs. the cosmetic industry which is governed by the USDA. Our company, HollyBeth’s Natural Luxury, would like to be certified USDA organic and by Ecocert however, the more I read the more I am unfortunately disenchanted.

This learning curve is the responsibility of both the manufacturer and the end consumer.

Many labels are confusing and deliberately mislead as green-washing takes hold. These “natural” beauty companies and third party certifiers are calling themselves the watchdogs of the natural beauty industry but who is regulating them?

People are confused about the difference between organic and natural, and now certified organic. Essentially, organic farming is better for our environment and anything we put in or on our bodies is better for us if it is organic. This is not necessarily always the case with natural products.

Products touted as natural are usually made with ingredients derived from fruit, sugars, and vitamins. These ingredients may have been farmed using pesticides or chemicals and the end result of this product as a whole have nothing “natural” about it at all! They could have anything in them as they are allowed to label a product as natural with only 5% of the ingredient content actually being natural.

In order to be certified organic by the USDA or Ecocert not only does the product have to be inspected, but the facility has to be assessed as well. All of our ingredients come from certified organic suppliers.

HollyBeth’s Natural Luxury also goes a step further to educate our customers on what that really means and the benefits of organic beauty. 

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