More ‘Natural’ Guidelines Are in the Works

Another day, another guideline to what is natural. NSF International, a U.S. testing and certification organization, and NaTrue, The International Natural and Organic Cosmetic Association, have partnered to develop an American national standard for natural personal care products.


According to the organizations, The American national standard will define the use of the term “naturall” and will protect the integrity of verified natural personal care products. NaTrue’s natural personal care criteria (NaTrue Standard Level 1) will be used as a foundation for the development of an American version, which will help establish a globally recognized definition of “natural” in personal care products, including cosmetics, oral care and personal hygiene products.


A recent survey of eco-friendly buying habits found that many consumers are skeptical of the term “natural” on product packaging, with 65% saying that they would like to see the term “certified” for both processes and ingredients. This finding identifies an unmet need for personal care manufacturers until today’s new natural personal care standard announcement.


“In the absence of a standard definition, consumers often question the term ‘natural’ on personal care products as to what it actually means,” said NSF International Standards Director Jane Wilson. “By collaborating with NaTrue, consumer groups, industry experts and regulators, the American national standard for natural personal care products will define, in line with NaTrue’s Label approach, the use of the term ‘natural’ helping to protect and promote authentic and quality natural personal care products worldwide.”


NSF International will develop the new natural personal care standard utilizing an consensus-based process that allows for balanced participation from key stakeholder groups, including regulators, personal care manufacturers, trade associations, product retailers and other stakeholders from the natural personal care products community.


NSF International encourages all industry and regulatory experts to participate in the standards development process. The first stakeholder meeting to discuss the development of the new standard for natural personal care products will be held Thursday, March 10 at the Natural Products Expo West trade show in Anaheim, Calif. Parties interested in helping to develop the standard can contact NSF Standards Manager Lorna Badman at [email protected] or 734-827-6806 for more information.


This is the second U.S. national standard that NSF International plans to develop for the personal care industry, according to Wilson.


“A year ago, the NSF/ANSI 305 standard was introduced for manufacturers seeking to have their personal care products certified as containing organic ingredients. Developing a standard for natural personal care products will help delineate the two sectors for consumers and bring meaning to the term “natural,” explained Wilson.