I interviewed Yan Yan who is an expert in China’s cosmetics industry. She is an associate researcher at the China Academy of Inspection and Quarantine, and once served as the deputy director of the Cosmetics Technology Center of the China Academy of Inspection and Quarantine.
Linjie: As a researcher at the China Academy of Inspection and Quarantine, what do you think of organic skin care products in the Chinese market given that there are currently no certification standards for organic skin care products in China?
Yan: Although the organic trend is becoming popular, the certification of organic skincare products involves production, ingredients, packaging, and transportation so China currently has no clear organic certification. But this does not mean that it is impossible to distinguish. In my opinion, international certification standards can be used to differentiate. Only through international organic certification is the “organicness” of a product guaranteed. There are currently three levels of organic skin care products in China
Yan: Premium certification is for products that are BDIH certified, Cosmebio & Ecocert certified, or ICEA certified, and meet all the necessary requirements for a natural skincare brand and use more than 95% plant-based, natural, organic farming ingredients as the main ingredients.
Yan: Intermediate certification is for products that claim to be natural, containing organic agricultural ingredients as ingredients, but not strictly through the BDIH ((German: Association of Manufacturers and Distributors)) certification.
Yan: Primary certification is for products that are marketed as a “natural product” but not clearly labeled on the packaging. The product claims to be “natural” but does not contain certified organic ingredients.
Linjie: Understood, so may I ask if this type of certification is binding on beauty brands that claim to be organic in the market?
Yan: This is currently only the unspoken rules of the beauty testing community, and not included in the skincare regulations, so it is not binding
Linjie: In your opinion, is it possible to promote organic certification in China in the short term?
Yan: That is still difficult, because there are specific requirements for products from raw material cultivation methods, soil, and even to the collection process and so on. Certification will be difficult; it may need to set up a special organic certification body. But at present, the proportion of organic skincare products in the Chinese market is still relatively small compared to ordinary skincare products. If the demand is not large enough, then it is difficult to set up a special regulatory department.
Linjie: Do you have any suggestions for my project in this case?
Yan: Your starting point is meaningful, and hopefully you can keep doing it. You can expand your influence by partnering with online or offline retailers. For non-specialized cosmetics consumers, the overly detailed certification regulations and concepts are relatively difficult to understand. You can promote organic skin care in a different way, which will bring it more into the consumers’ view.
Linjie: Understood.
Linjie: Thank you very much for your reply!
Conclusion
Yan’s advice on my intervention from a beauty industry practitioner’s perspective was very inspiring and made me realize that organic skincare education for consumers should be easy to understand, too many obscure concepts and chemical terms might increase the gap between me and the stakeholders. I started to think about what medium and content I should use for my next intervention. Her affirmation of my topic also gave me the confidence to continue the project, and more importantly, after talking to experts in the skincare testing industry, I have a clearer understanding of the current state of organic skincare in China, which will help me to improve my interventions.