Deciphering ingredients: Integrity in the cosmetics industry
By Envision Magazine on April 25, 2014
Story by Makeda Drennan
Photos by Tiffany Han and Kyle McKee
Multimedia by Kallyn Ehlers
Since Christina Ketchum moved to Eugene from her home in Florida, she has been devoted to providing people with genuinely natural cosmetic and body care products. She puts this passion to work at Sundance Natural Foods, a small Eugene business with shelves stocked full of non-processed foods, local produce, and herbal remedies. Tucked away at the far end of the store is the body care section, Ketchum’s area of expertise.
Ketchum moved to Eugene because it offered her the opportunity to explore what she calls “the natural side of medicine”—something she was unable to find back home in Florida. Four years ago, she was hired into the deli at Sundance. A year later, she began working in the body care and vitamin department, and it was here Ketchum realized the need for sustainable cosmetics in today’s world. Since then, she has worked to stock Sundance’s shelves with products that are harmless to both the environment and the consumers.
Ketchum’s efforts are not mirrored by many other cosmetics aficionados in the industry. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not regulate the abilities of cosmetics companies to use labels such as “organic” or “natural,” and many companies are taking advantage of this lack of policy. Some brands’ names and advertisements suggest the use of all-natural ingredients, but are in reality made with harmful chemicals or ingredients that require the exploitation of the environment.
These products have been classified as “cheater brands” and are often hard to spot. For example, Ketchum recently discovered the presence of honeysuckle extract in a brand called Grateful Body. Ketchum says that, honeysuckle extract can mimic parabens in the body, proving harmful to the user when used in a cosmetics product. “[Grateful Body] seems amazing and clean, but honeysuckle extract is found consistently in their body care products,” says Ketchum. As a result, Sundance removed the brand from the store in an effort to keep its products clean. “We try to be on top of it, but it’s difficult to figure these things out,” she says.
Ketchum and her Sundance coworkers aren’t the only advocates of clean cosmetics in Eugene. Balance Beauty and Health is a seven-month old business that was started by Dana LaVoie, licensed acupuncturist and natural cosmetics enthusiast. Before discovering makeup with all-natural ingredients, she was unable to wear it at all. When she did, her skin felt irritated and dry. After trying brands with clean ingredients, she became interested in supplying similar products to her customers, and was joined by licensed aestheticianCeline Bailey.
Bailey is a self-described skeptic of all makeup products. Raised by her father, she never had experience with buying or using cosmetics. Now, she offers makeovers and consultations to customers on a daily basis. “I love educating others,” Bailey says of her interactions with customers. “That’s the bottom line.”
The bottom line of Balance Beauty and Health is similar. Every cosmetic product offered is 100 percent free of toxins, an integrity policy that both LaVoie and Bailey work hard to maintain. Finding sustainable cosmetics without harmful ingredients or production methods is “the hardest part,” LaVoie says. Like Sundance Natural Foods, LaVoie and Bailey are constantly on the lookout for brands with clean ingredients. “It’s a lot of work to find out what’s actually hidden away in the markets,” says LaVoie. Currently, they stock their shelves with five main cosmetics brands: Sappho Organics, Vapour Organic Beauty, 100% Pure, Alima Pure, and Primitive Makeup.
Though natural cosmetics like these exist on the market today, big-name brands with harmful ingredients are still popular with consumers. According to a video titled “The Story of Cosmetics” produced by The Story of Stuff Project, a healthy planet initiative started in 2008, the average American woman uses 12 body care or cosmetics products per day, while the average American man uses about six. Of these products, each contains over one dozen chemicals that are known to be harmful. The video goes on to state that less than 20 percent of the ingredients in cosmetics have been analyzed by a safety panel. In a movement called The Coming Clean Campaign, consumers have started to fight for more transparency in the industry. Started in 2004 by the Organic Consumers Association, the campaign aims to expose the fraudulent labeling that is so often found in the world of cosmetics by identifying the companies that deceptively claim to sell all-natural products. Some of these brands include Avalon Organics, Jason Pure, Natural & Organic, and Kiss My Face Botanicals.
This lack of policy in the cosmetics world not only threatens the health of consumers, it also harms small businesses economically, creating a conundrum for many smaller-name brands such as those sold at Sundance and Balance Beauty and Health. A USDA “organic” stamp has a price tag, which includes the cost of an application fee, site inspection fee and annual renewal fee. A general organic certification can cost upwards of $200, reaching prices as high as $1,500. Smaller companies that use natural and local ingredients lack the money to pay for a certification, whereas larger companies (that may be using foreign resources, unethical means of production or less natural ingredients) are able to pay for the stamp and therefore continue to be sold in stores. Thus, a cycle is formed. Small companies don’t earn the money needed to pay for a certification, and consumers continue to support larger-name brands. “It’s been hard for our store, especially in the body care department,” says Ketchum of maintaining the USDA label on all of its products. “The USDA organic seal costs a lot of money for companies, and we try to prioritize local companies over larger distributions.”
Ketchum feels the weight of this reality when choosing which products to sell. “Quality and consistency are hard to maintain when a company becomes popular or large,” she says. “Even if you find a company with really clean ingredients, it’s not just about the ingredients.” She realizes the importance of not only sustainability within ingredients, but within methods of production and attention to detail as well.
Eugene, in particular, offers a complicated challenge to stores like Sundance. It’s something Ketchum calls the “Eugene demographic;” part of the population wants all-natural, carefully crafted products and are willing to pay higher prices for them. The remaining population lacks the economic means to support smaller businesses and instead opt for cheaper, and usually less environmentally-friendly, brands. “People want what they’re comfortable with, in the end,” says Ketchum.
At Market of Choice, an Oregon-based grocery store chain, health department buyer Scott Elwell has a similar outlook. “Eugene has changed our company,” he says, referring to the rise in demand for organic products. At the same time, Elwell realizes the importance of marketing to the entirety of Eugene’s population. “It’s important for us to carry what our customers want,” he says.
The world of cosmetics is just as indecipherable as the complicated ingredients list that decorates each bottle. With the Coming Clean Campaign, consumers are beginning to realize the importance of organic integrity, but the fight is far from over. Most stores have yet to find a balance between sustainability and organic ingredients. Ketchum says, “I’m still trying to find the perfect cosmetics company.”