Hi there,
Let's talk about how your skincare choices can impact communities and trigger a chain effect of positive changes in communities around the world.
Recently, there have been much buzz about sustainable packaging. But I would like to draw your attention to what's seldom talked about - the ingredients that make the skincare product.
For example, mica, that ingredient found in makeup that gives you that ethereal glow is closely associated with child labour. (1) It's unreal to think that children are still being exploited just to fuel the beauty industry's desire for unattainable perfection. However there have been a shift in customer awareness and many are making a conscious decision to choose makeup that uses ethically sources or synthetic mica. (2)
Or, another highly sought after skincare ingredient - sandalwood oil - is highly exploited with widespread deforestation and exploitation of sandalwood tree reserves. (3)
Here at A For Apothecary, I make sure ingredients sourced in my skincare formulations are sustainable ingredients and suppliers take steps to prevent over farming, pay fare wages, and gives back to the environment or community in their country.
Our key ingredient - Oat Lipid E and Organic Colloidal Oats - are ECOCERT/COSMOS approved natural, free from genetically modified ingredients, and not tested on animals. Ecocert and Cosmos are known to be one of the most stringent certification bodies in the world. They conduct on-site inspections to ensure the products meet the requirements. The core values of my oat supplier resonates with A For Apothecary's vision: accountability, ethical practice, supporting local communities and sustainability.
Our certified organic jojoba oil is sourced from Israel, in the Negev Desert. They practice sustainable farming methods such as using reclaimed water through drip irrigation technology on non-arable land, manage waste by reusing jojoba pulp to fertilize yields and as animal feed and protecting biodiversity by maintaining varieties of “wild-type” Jojoba plantations and implementing a plan to conserve natural habitats for wildlife in the Negev desert of Israel. They also harness renewable energy sources to reduce overall greenhouse gas emissions.
For our coconut oil, we import only the best centrifuged organic coconut oil. When it comes to cold-pressed coconut oil, there are various cold-pressed methods to extract the oil. Centrifugal extraction is the best and most expensive method available in the market today. It ensures the best retention of the Medium-chain triglycerides found in coconut oil. Our coconut oil comes from a family run farm that protects the best interests of the farmers in Thailand, ensuring they are paid higher wages while being able to keep their land.
These are some of the examples of how you can make a conscious effort to choose skincare that uses sustainable ingredients. The power is in your hands, the consumer. Your choice is one small step that will create ripples in the skincare industry to make more ethical choices in what they put into their skincare ingredients.
Love,
Jingyi
1: https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2019/05/229746/mica-in-makeup-mining-child-labor-india-controversy
2. https://mygreencloset.com/ethical-mica-makeup/
3. https://blackpaint.sg/sandalwood-oil/#Sustainable_and_ethical_sources
