When beauty meets green: the EU Ecolabel for cosmetic products

Trustworthy, informative, enlightening and insightful: these were some of the key takeaways from the webinar "When Beauty Meets Green", which aimed to explain the opportunities offered by the EU Ecolabel for cosmetic products. Speakers highlighted how consumers are increasingly engaged in the green transition, demanding sustainable products and greater transparency regarding product ingredients. Key industry players demonstrated how the EU Ecolabel helps cosmetics businesses provide clear, trustworthy information, avoid greenwashing, and shared success stories from the sector. 

Two companies shared how the EU Ecolabel has unlocked new opportunities and expanded access to diverse markets, enhancing their business growth and sustainability efforts. 

Kroll SRL has strived to produce high-quality, effective products that respect both people and the environment. Serving sectors such as Ho.Re.Ca, schools, communities, DIY, and automotive, they are specialised in rinse-off articles. In 2002 they were the first cosmetic company certified EMAS and in 2008, they had the first cosmetics products awarded with the EU Ecolabel in Italy. Since then, they have certified multiple products, with EU Ecolabel products accounting for 20% of their 2024 revenue – “a significant and constant growth in sales, compared to non-certified products during the same time frame,” according to Lorenzo Bernardini, Product and Process Manager at Kroll.

Meanwhile, Chemi-Pharm have noticed that more and more consumers are asking for EU Ecolabel certified products, the EU Ecolabel being their key for success in public procurement. Most of their clients are in the medical sector – hospitals and public institutions – which has been a great benefit and “allows us to participate in our mission to make the public sector greener,” said Joonas Lahe, Managing Director of Chemi-Pharm.

Green beauty: increasing visibility and transparency 

Speaking in the webinar, representatives from Cosmetics Europe, Amazon and the Danish Consumer Council discussed the importance of sustainability and transparency for consumers within the cosmetics industry.  

Cosmetics Europe views sustainability and transparency, including the use of ecolabels, as win-win strategies in business-customer relationships, building trust in products, fostering loyalty, and becoming key pillars of competitiveness. To increase the visibility and uptake of the EU Ecolabel, they recommended creating market incentives, sharing best practices to enable producers to learn from one another and enhancing visibility among consumers through engagement with retailers.  

Engagement that EU Ecolabel successfully implemented with marketplaces such as Amazon, where Climate Pledge Friendly highlights products with trusted third-party certifications, such as the EU Ecolabel, making it easy to discover and shop for over 1.4 million products with sustainability features. As a result, 37.6 million Amazon customers switched to more sustainable products in 2023, with a result of a 12% increase in sales. 

A call to retailers to improve their green offer was also done by the Danish Consumer Council, highlighting the increasing interest from consumers in buying ‘clean and green’ and in knowing what they are putting on their skin. Using the app Kemiluppen, users can scan products to see all the ingredients and to see if products have been certified with ecolabels. The app currently has around 10,000-14,000 scans per day and covers 20,000 products (1,500 of which are awarded with the Nordic Swan or the EU Ecolabel). The app has been so popular that is also used by consumers from other countries, like Ireland. 

Seizing EU Ecolabel opportunities 

The EU Ecolabel does not only guarantee excellent environmental performance, but it is a tool for circularity, resilience and competitiveness, offering the advantages of an official certification, such as increased products’ visibility, easier access to Green Public Procurement and easier access to Member State incentives.  

There are currently 1,286 EU Ecolabel cosmetics products on the European market, and numbers are expected to raise, given the prominent role of the EU Ecolabel in new and forthcoming legislation on sustainable products, sustainability labels and green claims. Good news for the consumers willing to take an active part in the green transition. 

Watch the webinar recording if you couldn’t attend live and read through the presentations:

• Silvia Ferratini - DG ENV, European Commission
• Enrico Iacovizzi - Cosmetics Europe
• Charlotte Willems - Amazon
• Christel Søgaard Kirkeby -  Danish Consumer Council
• Lorenzo Bernardini - Kroll SRL
• Joonas Lahe - AS Chemi Pharm
• Giorigia Faraca - Joint Research Centre

For more information, visit the EU Ecolabel website. 

Other useful links: 

• EU Ecolabel for personal and animal care products page 
• EU Ecolabel Criteria for cosmetic products and animal care products user manual