Natural-born beauty lines
By Tatiana Boncompagni
Published: July 23 2004 15:52 | Last Updated: July 23 2004 15:58

When it comes to buying organic, we know why paying extra for pesticide-free produce or hormone-free milk may be a good idea. But what about skincare? Is it worth paying a premium for a facial moisturiser made with chamomile that no man-made molecule has touched?

Judging by the growth of the organic skincare niche in the past few years, a lot of people seem to think it is. According to Packaged Facts, a market research company based in New York, the organic and natural personal care market was worth $3.9bn in 2003, up more than half since 1998. Likewise, Ecocert, a French certification body for organic products, certifies 800 products from 70 manufacturers.

And much of the growth coming at the high end. Shopping for all-natural products used to mean calling in at the local health food store. Now, however, thanks in part to the success of Estée Lauder's Aveda and Australia's Jurlique, upmarket beauty boutiques and department stores are starting to stock them. Online, there's Saffron Rouge, a chic, two-year-old website that is one of many dedicated to selling organic beauty products.

The products are also getting more sophisticated. As Barbara Close, who owns Naturopathica, a spa and organic skincare line, says: "We are past the nut and granola stage. We aren't making home-made oatmeal face scrubs any more." One of Naturopathica's bestsellers is its Skin Renewal Gel 10%, a skin-smoother and blackhead-buster for sensitive skin.

For the estimated 45 per cent of us who believe that what we put on our skin is as important to our health as what we put in our mouths (according to a recent poll by The Natural Marketing Institute, a US research company), the advancement of organic science in skincare and hair care is good news indeed.

However, what about those consumers who are a bit more sceptical? Is it really worth the bother and the extra expense, which most organic skincare manufacturers justify by citing the difficulty in sourcing ingredients?

Maybe not. New York-based dermatologist Patricia Wexler says she uses Aveda hair products because she likes their aesthetic effects, but that the dangers associated with the higher levels of parabens and surfactants in non-organic formulations are overestimated.

Wexler believes that non-organic products such as those in the range she helped develop, Almay Kinetin Skin Care, can be just as non-irritating, non-allergenic and non-inflammatory as organic products. Plus, organic extracts such as avocado oil can create bigger allergic reactions in some people than chemicals, says Michael Warshaw, a US cosmetic chemist.

But the biggest reason Wexler thinks consumers would be wise not to boycott non-organic products is performance. Especially with anti-ageing products, organic lines aren't as advanced as their less "pure" kin, which can work better and faster. "Sometimes you are sacrificing efficacy when you are using strictly organic," says Wexler.

Still, there's a certain appeal to using products that are devoid of pesticide-laden botanicals and synthetic aromas. Doux Me, the so-organic-you-keep-it-in-the-fridge skincare line created by Swiss-born ex-journalist Caroline Wachsmuth, is based only on essential oils, floral waters and vegetable oils. Using her products is like going on a raw food diet, only infinitely easier.

And for many consumers, buying organic products is as much about saving the environment and helping ailing economies as it is about getting healthy-looking skin or hair. Aveda's commitment to organic, for example, extends in large measure from its dedication to sustainable agriculture, especially in developing countries, such as north-eastern Brazil, from which the company imports an ingredient in its Pure Abundance volumising shampoo.

Of course, there's a limit as to how much shampoo social justice or the fear of man-made ingredients can sell. "You have to have a product that people will want to buy again," says Aubrey Hampton, owner and creator of Aubrey Organics. "The first sale can be made because you have organic on the bottle, but it won't make the second sale."