PLAINFOSSE HORTENSE^1,2,3, BURGER PAULINE¹, VERGER-DUBOIS GREGORY1,3, FERNANDEZ XAVIER2*
*Corresponding author
1. NissActive, Grasse, France
2. Université Côte d’Azur, CNRS, ICN, Nice cedex 2, France
3. Laboratoires JYTA, Carros cedex, France

Abstract

When it comes to beauty, consumers are increasingly concerned by the efficacy of the cosmetic products they use, so marketing arguments need to be based on rigorous testing to support claims displayed on the product’s packaging. Lately, the cosmetic market was also driven by the widespread consumers’ desire to “go green”. As a result, the increasing demand for natural ingredients with assessed bioactivities has profoundly modified the strategies adopted by cosmetic professionals to innovate in terms of actives. Sourcing and developing natural cosmetic actives is a long-term procedure that is thoroughly described in the present paper, via the example of the design of a cosmetic ingredient based on Quercus pubescens Willd. leaves extract, which anti-age properties were assessed by a combination of in vitro assays.

INTRODUCTION

Consumers are increasingly concerned by the questionable safety of the conventional personal care (PC) products they were used to use daily: they consider them as potentially harmful to health, while doing considerable damage to the environment (contamination of the water and the aquatic ecosystem). Green-minded buyers go preferentially for botanically-derived ingredients, especially if the product is perceived to penetrate and/or permanently change the composition of skin/hair. Natural products involve no harmful cosmetics and all ingredients are biodegradable. A recent survey actually stated that green features (biodegradability, sustainability) are secondary only to suitability, efficacy (unsubstantiated claims particularly scrutinized), and a quality-price balance in buyers’ decision-making for PC and beauty products (1). Hence, driven by the widespread consumers’ desire to “go green”, the cosmetic market lately operated a green U-turn (2) that has profoundly modified the strategies adopted by cosmetic professionals to innovate in terms of actives, making notably use of raw materials sourced from renewable plant sources or o ...