Why a transgenic bacterium makes cosmetics more sustainable than mass organic farming

[Inkriql]

Fifty hectares of organic farming, the equivalent of 100 soccer fields, is what a well-known niche beauty products firm needs to produce the essential oil with which it formulates its best selling line. "Exploiting a natural resource, certified or not, to obtain a small amount of raw material many times, is not at all sustainable. Let us only think about water consumption and soil wear," reflects the pharmacist Héctor Núñez, known as' Cosmetocritic ', the alias used in social networks. Master in cosmetics, opened the account on Instagram last December because he was tired of the profiles that spoke without having a specific training, and "the bad press that was being done to conventional cosmetics", which is not necessarily less sustainable than the 'natural'.

Amparo Violera is another professional who has gained followers denying bulos. If a natural asset has its synthetic twin, says this scientist, it is most likely more sustainable to synthesize it in the laboratory than to extract it from nature and purify it. "With hyaluronic acid it happens. Luckily, it is not common for it to be extracted from the crests of roosters, but rather to be produced biotechnologically in reactors with the help of transgenic bacteria," he says. Apoem is one of the brands that bet on biotechnology and prefer to obtain its ingredients through processes such as fermentation or cell culture. Organic is their second option, "but whenever it is second life, that is, that they are not cultivated ex professed for the skin, but that they are a byproduct of the food industry," explains its R&D director, María del Mar Arasa

"Biotechnology is the future," insists Ana Santamarina. Natural cosmetics formulator, defends that being truly sustainable would also mean adhering to green chemistry, "because certain types of chemical reactions should be avoided and formulated with few ingredients, among many other things. On the other hand, we should take into account the conditions to which workers are subjected: micas and clays can come from Third World countries and have them collected by young children. " Almost the same as we told you about climate feeding at the beginning of this issue.
Plastics emit less CO2 in transport

Although there are also other good options, with the jars there are certain paradoxes. As the cosmetologist Eva Raya, co-founder of Alice in Beautyland, explains, although plastic is one of the worst-seen materials, it is also lighter, which reduces CO2 emissions. "Some apparently more recyclable containers are not so harmless with the transmission of particles to the product, and certain forms of packaging that were used in the past would not pass the sanitary controls that are required today," Raya points out.

Núñez talks about the fashion of sugarcane boats, which are still plastic, only obtained from this plant. For him, one of the questions you should ask yourself is if the cosmetic we are going to buy needs packaging. "That is another option: look for cosmetics that dispense with secondary conditioning or if they carry it at least made of recycled cardboard […]. It is true that airless type dosing systems protect the formula of our dirty claws, but it is almost impossible to recycle them, so a simple plug doesn't seem like such a bad idea. "

When the Lush brand uses packaging - it sells cosmetics already without them - it uses recycled or organic, recyclable, compostable or reusable fiber materials. In 2016 they were looking for an alternative to solid shampoos (they are served in metal boxes) when they contacted Eco Intervention, a non-profit group whose objective is to educate the inhabitants of the Portuguese Alentejo in the sustainable exploitation of forests. In exchange for the cork boxes of these pills (equivalent to three bottles of shampoo), Lush donates five euros to help reforestation.

"We knew that cork was a material capable of sequestering greenhouse gases from the atmosphere, but when we studied it in depth we realized that one of our boxes was capable of removing more CO2 than it emitted in its life cycle. We are talking about containers that literally fight against climate change, "explain Simon Brewer and Ben Davis, from the Lush Environmental Impact team. The cork boxes were moved from Portugal to Dorset (southwest England) on a Dutch sailboat. "Rather than being a nostalgic and beautiful way of transporting goods, sailing could be an emission-free alternative that is worth using again," said Agnes Gendry, of the Ethical Purchase team of the English company.

Chartering a sloop is much less polluting, of course, but there are less striking and effective measures: the fields and factories of Yves Rocher are within a radius of 30 kilometers within La Gacilly (Brittany), where they manage to manufacture 89% of their production. All the electricity they consume is obtained from renewable energy sources; The luxury cosmetic Sisley plant in Saint-Ouen-l'Aumône (France), integrates on the roof the largest photovoltaic plant north of the Loire, 36,000 square meters that allow them to stop emitting about 44 tons of CO2 every year .
You can't know how organic your cream is by the label

Knowing the true sustainability of beauty products is a real mess. To be strict, it implies much more than knowing with what materials the container is manufactured and, of course, if the origin of its ingredients is natural or artificial (which does not help much). "It is a matter of extreme difficulty because we have to take into account the entire life cycle of cosmetic products, from what we can do with what we already have in our hands: Can it be recycled and reused? Does it contaminate water? What has been done during its manufacture and distribution? What and how much energy has been used? Was the waste managed? Where and how was the product transported? ", Violero says, adding:" Before its manufacture It would be necessary to question where the ingredients come from, if renewable sources or working conditions are used.Assessing a product in a store without an active collaboration by the company that manufactures it is simply impossible.Recall that they have no legal obligation to share with the consumer its internal policies or processes, although more and more are those that transmit their philosophies with an intention of transparency and connection with their client ".

So you also work for sustainability. Since last year, L'Oréal Spain can boast of being neutral in carbon emissions in all its production, distribution and office centers. The factory where they produce hair products, in Burgos, is the first "dry factory" of the group: there the use of fresh water is only conceived as raw material and for human consumption, the rest is reused. A few weeks ago they presented the report in which they collected the green achievements achieved to date, and took the opportunity to announce the creation of a system that analyzes the social and environmental profile during the entire life cycle of their cosmetics. It is the sustainable product optimization tool or SPOT, for its acronym in English. "The Spanish consumer is becoming more aware and more informed, so we have a responsibility to be transparent," said the Director of Sustainability of l'Oréal Spain, Íñigo Larraya.

Those interested in the traceability of Guerlain products access the information from the QR codes of the brand's website. The company founded