Organic & big company: incompatible?
- Faïrouz
- 21 nov. 2020
- 2 min de lecture
Dernière mise à jour : 30 nov. 2020
It is quite easy to get lost in the plethora of organic labels. Are they sincere? What is their bill of specifications? Let us look at N.A.E.’s certifications and formulas to figure out whether they are as natural as they claim to be.
N.A.E. proudly displays the Ecocert Cosmos Organic label on pack, along with the Vegan Formula specification and the percentage of natural ingredients.
The Ecocert certification
First, let us talk about the label. All of N.A.E.’s products are certified by the French label Ecocert under the Cosmos Organic standards. This certification ensures a minimum of 95% of natural ingredients and a minimum of 20% of organically sourced products (10% for products that necessitate rinsing). In reality, N.A.E.’s products all have a minimum of 97% of natural ingredients. It even goes up to 100% for solid shampoos. This is definitely an asset for the brand. It is a token of trust.
Vegan formula
Although the Ecocert label already guarantees that the product has not been tested on animals, it is very smart of N.A.E. to mention the fact that it is vegan on pack. Often, consumers do not know the labels’ bill of specifications. Therefore, displaying “99% of natural ingredients” and “vegan formula” on pack is an asset to differentiate, it makes life easier for consumers.
INCI list decryption
However, labels and promises are not enough for some aficionados. 89% of millennials do read the formulas when making a purchase (Kantar WorldPanel, 2019). I did the exercise for you. I dissected the formula of one of their products, the gentle cleansing micellar water from the range Purezza, and put it to the test on The Truth About Cosmetics. Here are the results:
As you can see, nothing to report here! The formula is actually sparkling clean.
Nevertheless, there is still some mistrust about products that can be found in general supermarkets. I am definitely guilty of that. I would rather go to a specialist circuit to get organic cosmetics. In addition, their positioning is quite unusual, but I have to admit very strategic. It is 10% to 30% more expensive than similar conventional beauty products, ranging from 3,50€ for the shower gel to 11,50€ for the anti-aging cream, but still cheaper than beauty products that could be find at specialized organic shops. This is great for curious consumers who are beginning their journey towards a more sustainable consumption, but the fact that it is available at general grocery stores may be unsettling for accustomed organic customers.
I will admit that I started writing this article thinking that the Ecocert label was a sort of window dressing, that if N.A.E. was Henkel’s property, a big industrial company, it couldn’t be that natural. Well, never judge a book by its cover. Read the formula, analyze it. All the answers are there!
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