Her vision was and is to show that green beauty products work and are pleasant to use. Dr Barbara Olioso talks about the importance of formulating according to green standards and how cosmetic products can establish a connection to mother nature in a time where we live far away from it.
COSSMA: You have been working in the beauty industry for several years. What made you decide to work in this sector?
When I was doing my chemistry degree I realised that novel molecular R&D takes a really long time so I realised that I wanted to work in an industry where one can “sow” the seeds and see them growing to the point where people use them for good. Soon after my degree I happened to send a letter with my CV to a UK natural cosmetic company and the rest is history. Since then I have been really enjoying the multi sensorial as well as scientific nature of this industry, not to mention the wellbeing and green chemistry innovation potential I have seen unravelling over the years. What other industry has these qualities?
What is the attraction of this industry for you? What is so special about it?
Apart from the things I said previously I love using plant extracts and discovering their properties and story. There is a special feeling when you apply a plant extract on the skin or even hair, and I think it is because we crave the contact with nature because we live at a time where we live quite far away from it, so cosmetics can provide some kind of connection with nature giving a sense of wellbeing.
What has been your most impressive professional experience so far?
Every project to me is special, with its challenges, lessons and rewards. Working on the first organic eau de toilette while I was working at Primavera Aromatherapy in 2004 was pioneering at a time when there were no organic applications of this nature. There were not many organic ingredients at the time but we managed to develop three very beautiful scents, despite sceptics saying it could not be done. Today these products would need to be reviewed from a sustainability point of view, so even when you achieve a great result, constant improvement is needed to stay relevant and in line with the time.
Anyone who is so committed to their profession has visions. What were yours at the beginning and how have they changed?
My vision was to show green beauty products work and are pleasant to use. Even today there are still people out there believing this despite all the advancements over the years. The industry has come a long way in terms of textures and clinical activity. In order to help other formulators to know more about formulating according to green beauty standards, I have also been teaching about organic certifications and green chemistry preservation (I wrote a handbook about this topic) to other formulators. Since 2018 I also have been moderating the sustainability corner at in cosmetics global as being natural does not mean necessarily been environmentally friendly. This means I have now quite a unique background i.e. technical and sustainability strategy so I also work with brands to translate their vision into a more concrete list of ingredients criteria in order to navigate and communicate in the busy market place.
What do you want to achieve in your professional environment?
Continuing formulating great products with innovative ingredients is very important to me and also applying sustainability in a creative way to formulation and brand development. There is a beautiful creative potential in the complexity behind sustainability, and I really enjoy developing and translating beauty concepts into formulations and finished products which are coherent and novel. In terms of change I think it would be great to see a harmonised system for green and organic cosmetics ideally globally. This would give a clear point of difference for products that are authentic and the ones that only appear authentic, giving clarity and confidence to consumers that are really committed to their green values and wish to invest accordingly.
How do you see the beauty industry changing in the next few years?
Sustainability has become inevitable in the last few years, so the whole beauty industry is going with this key trend in one way or another. However the challenge the industry faces is greenwashing, transparent supply chains and cost of plant derived ingredients. How do consumers know what is true and good for the environment? To me the answer to this question is harmonising the definition of green and organic beauty products. We’ll also see see how upcoming beauty scores will impact consumers and the industry.
You are a member of the new COSSMA Expert Advisory Board. What attracted you to this task and what do you want to achieve?
I have been enjoying writing for COSSMA for several years so this seems a natural evolution of this long-term relationship. COSSMA is also a publication providing a lot of very interesting content about green beauty for the formulators and the industry, not only ingredients but also packaging, so it is a great honour to be part of its Expert Advisory Board.
Dr Barbara Olioso
MRSC, The Green Chemist, Consultancy,
Wells, UK, www.thegreenchemist.com