The fifth edition of the 'Green Beauty Congress' organised by the Beauty Cluster and Mentactiva was held on Tuesday 30 May at the Fira Barcelona Gran Via, within the framework of Expoquimia. With the presence of more than 150 attendees, a large panel of experts and top-level professionals discussed the main developments in the natural cosmetics sector and dealt with relevant issues such as regulation, packaging and innovation.
In this fifth edition, attendees could enjoy a space dedicated to exploring sensoriality. In the 'Sensory Bar', which was the focus of the networking dynamic during the coffee break, Gotes Essentials' body oils, Saigu Cosmetics' new eyeshadow palette, Quinque's gel cleanser, Illos Cosmetics' nourishing night cream, Rulls' curl shampoo, Haan Ready's photoprotector and Provital's Altheostem active ingredient were on display. Sponsors and partners of the event such as CAAE, Provital, Unigolden, Aitex, Special Chemicals, Biogründl and Inquiaroma had a special space as exhibitors.
The day started at 10:00h, presented by Helena Rodríguez, director of 'Next In Beauty' and began with the welcome by Eva Lluch, vice-president of Beauty Cluster and owner of Lluch Essence, highlighting the return to the presentiality of the celebration of the event, after several editions in online format, which diminished the essence of the 'Green Beauty Congress'. Afterwards, Helena Rodríguez presented the data and market trends in natural cosmetics, making a 360º x-ray of the sector, from ingredients to packaging.
Later, in this first part of the Congress, Montserrat Arias, CEO and Founder of Bemypartner gave a presentation in which she explained to the audience the necessary aspects and keys to develop an effective brand communication: 'From Storytelling to Storydoing in the DNA of 'green beauty' companies'. In it, he explained the '10 key commandments of communication', among which he mentioned transparency and the need to know the consumer in order to humanise the company. Germán Castillo, founder of Kemchain and member of the AEFAA, took over to discuss the upcoming 2023 regulatory changes in natural cosmetics and began his presentation by warning that natural products do not always have to be sustainable. "We have to try to explain it to the consumer. We are facing three mountains: digitalisation, sustainability and compliance. When it comes to digitalisation, either we are fast or we disappear. AI will be a brutal change in our lives. They will no longer be three different mountains and will become one gigantic one. It is important that people in the company understand all this. We have to be climate neutral, circular, digital, safe for human health and the environment". Guillermo Castillo explained the importance of the Green Deal and what impact it can have on the cosmetics sector.
Ana Valera, presented the systems for targeted and/or controlled release of active ingredients for cosmetic formulations. The Project Manager in Microencapsulation Technologies at AINIA, presented the advances obtained in some of the innovative projects that AINIA is working on, related to advanced coating materials for the microencapsulation of sensitive compounds with biodegradable and biocompatible properties.
After the coffee break, where there was also space for networking dynamics, it was time for the participation of a large part of the sponsors of the event. Sonia Secchi, Technical and Sales Manager at Provital, explained how to take advantage of Provital's latest active ingredient Altheostem™, and its new concept of 'dermohacking' senescence with the eternal power of plant stem cells. Altheostem™, a well-aging, eco-responsible active ingredient, allows the preservation of the flower environment in nature, as it comes from stem cells from the petals of the Althaea rosea flower. After AINIA, María Blanes, Head of the Eco-processes Cosmetics and Health Research Group at AITEX, showed the hundred or so attendees the origin of natural ingredients and their application in R&D in the cosmetics industry. In her presentation, she highlighted the upcycling based on the revaluation of agro-ammientary waste and by-products that are converted into multifunctional active compounds that can act as substitutes for microplastics.
'Emotional Emergency in Beauty' was the title of the presentation by Eugenia Álvaro, R&D Manager at Inquiaroma, which served to explain one of the main attractions of cosmetics: textures and fragrances and how they influence the consumer experience.
Daniel Subirana, Product Manager of the cosmetics department at CAAE, gave the keys to the certification of cosmetic products in order to differentiate when they are truly organic and natural. He stressed that it is important to carry out a certification process under the appropriate standard and that this is prepared by an authorised and accredited control body, and explained the case of COSMOS certification.
Addressing the topic of trends, Ester Verdú, R+D Manager at Unigolden, presented to the audience one of the trends par excellence in natural cosmetics: upcycled ingredients and presented new ingredients obtained from waste from the agri-food and forestry industry that provide unique properties to formulations for skin and hair care, while reducing the impact on the environment. Continuing with circularity, Medeea Gavrilescu, Quality Assurance at Biogründl and Teresa Sánchez, Regulatory Affairs Assistant, presented the main challenges facing the cosmetics industry today: sustainability, eco-design and sustainable development.
The penultimate presentation was given by Clara Valverde, Formulation Specialist at ADP Cosmetics, and Miriam Manca, Global Product & Markeeting Skin Care at Zschimmer & Schwarz, and together they discussed Synergies in formulations with non-nanometric mineral filters.
To round off this fifth Green Beauty Congress, Tim Eaves, Co-Founder and CIO at Quadpack, and Sara Torres, Sustainability Professional at Quadpack, discussed packaging in the cosmetics sector: during their turn, they answered questions on eco-design, the impact of packaging on the environment and what the cosmetics sector can do to be more sustainable.
After the presentations, around 30 people enjoyed a formulation workshop with instruction from Laure Dupin of Provital, and also thanks to IKA. Attendees created a rejuvenating serum, 'Skin Reviving Antidote', with 2% of Provital's new active ingredient Altheostem™.