Natural Beauty and Skincare Brands Address Growing Consumer Standards for Environmental Packaging

Health is the new beauty buzzword and we have the “wellness-generation” to credit. As millennials quickly become the workforce majority, we’re seeing their values reshape the economy and the products on our shelves. From fitness-centric electronics and superfood-packed juices to the ongoing search for natural beauty regimens, this consumer group, the largest living generation, is in daily pursuit of healthy choices, from diet and exercise, to beauty and skincare, and equally as important is the health of the planet.

As focus on a more healthy planet continues to increase the boundaries between health and beauty are being blurred. Beauty and skincare brands are clearly seeing the need to enter this territory and introduce products that meet the newest consumer standards: natural ingredients, organic sourcing, food-standard guidelines, wellness-driven formulations, all packaged with environmental considerations.

The idea of healthy choices, now considered a lifestyle as opposed to what was once a goal-driven mindset, is more closely linking nature with nurture. This philosophy is in turn directly linking skincare with wellness. As these connections are made, and consumers become more educated about ingredients, formulation transparency is essential to a brand’s authenticity.

Second to anti-aging, the skin-healing market is currently seeing the largest growth. CBD (cannabidiol) oil, reported to offer a multitude of health benefits, is predicted to be the number one hero ingredient sought after by consumers in 2019.

Blunt skincare, a cannabis-based face oil collection that made its debut this spring, holds both wellness and transparency as its core values — the brand’s name, Blunt, was purposely intended to impart the brand’s mission of authenticity and openness.

Blunt’s founder and CEO, Stas Chirkov began his career as a chemist in the beauty industry. “As a cannabis user, chemist and a beauty product developer, I saw the need for a beauty brand that celebrates cannabis while specializing in researching cannabinoids for skincare benefits. Our brand openly talks about the use of cannabis for medicinal, recreational, and skin care purposes. The main focus for Blunt skincare is to educate beauty consumers about products in this new and rapidly growing market,” says Chirkov.

With more and more consumers embracing the plastic-free movement and advocating for the health of the planet, there is a growing expectation of brands to package their products with as much environmental consideration as they put into their formulations. Skincare pioneer Josie Maran first introduced her luxury brand and her organically grown Argan Oil over a decade ago. The idea of conscientious, holistic care is the foundation for the JMC design principle and is applied to every aspect of the brand’s line from cosmetics to skincare and body care. The brand celebrated its 10th anniversary by further embracing its “luxury with a conscience” vision, and moving all of its packaging from SBC board to Neenah Folding Board PC 100 -- a move which Maran says fell in line with the brand’s goal of continually advancing its sustainable practices while at the same time, elevating the packaging’s luxury status on the shelf with a brighter, whiter box and better, more consistent print quality.

Refusing to accept things at face value, “skintellectual” consumers are questioning the science of skincare and putting pressure on clean beauty brands to be open and honest about their formulations. Farmacy, a farm-to-face skincare brand that uses cutting-edge science to harness the healing powers of ingredients found in nature, developed and patented its own powerful hero ingredient named GreenEnvy. Authenticity and sustainability are at the forefront of Farmacy’s brand story. Its reusable, recyclable and biodegradable packaging system incorporates glass bottles with caps made of ash wood and boxes made with Neenah Environment Papers.

Ingredient savvy consumers, environmental movements, and the social media stage are forcing beauty brands to walk the walk when it comes to conceiving, formulating,and packaging their products. Neenah helps create solutions to take brands where their ideas lead.