MOJGAN MODDARESI

Founder of Personal Care regulatory and ChemComply (recently joined Registrar Corp), United Kingdom

Article 20 of both the UK and EU Cosmetics Regulations is a cornerstone in maintaining the integrity of cosmetic claims. It mandates that the language used in labeling, marketing, and advertising must be truthful and not misleading. As consumers become more informed and discerning, the importance of integrity in cosmetic claims has never been more pronounced.

To ensure transparency and consumer protection, the EU Regulation 655/2013 establishes the Common Criteria for Cosmetic Claims. These criteria are referenced in Article 20 and serve as the backbone of ethical marketing in the cosmetics industry. They require all claims to adhere to standards of legal compliance, truthfulness, evidential support, honesty, fairness, and informed decision-making.

1. Legal Compliance: All claims must comply with existing legal frameworks. This ensures that products are marketed responsibly and in accordance with the law.

2. Truthfulness: Claims must accurately reflect the product's properties and benefits. Misleading or exaggerated claims can erode consumer trust and damage brand reputation.

3. Evidential Support: Claims must be supported by adequate and verifiable evidence. This includes expert assessments and scientific studies that substantiate the product's benefits.

4. Honesty: The language used in claims should be honest and transparent. Consumers should be able to trust that the claims made about a product are genuine and not misleading.

5. Fairness: Claims should be fair and not denigrate competitors. The focus should be on promoting the product's own merits rather than disparaging others.

6. Informed Decision-Making: Consumers should have access to all the information they need to make informed purchasing decisions. This includes clear and accurate labeling and advertising.

Furthermore, the EU commission working group published a technical document in 2017 to provide a tool and clear guideline on Article 20 that can be denigratory This regulatory framework is not just a set of guidelines; it is a commitment to maintaining consumer trust and ensuring that the industry operates with integrity. These criteria are not only obligatory to follow, but it set up a clear guideline to follow specifically for “free from claims”.

According to Article 5 of the EU and UK regulation for the cosmetic products, the responsible person should ensure compliance with Article 20 of the CPR and with the common criteria set out in Commission Regulation (EU) No 655/2013. There is also an important role for the distributors’ channel, and they are responsible to act with duty of the care while interpretating cosmetic claims (Article 6 (1). (1)

One of the most critical aspects of the regulatory framework is the requirement for evidential support. This principle emphasises that claims, whether explicit or implicit, must be backed by adequate and verifiable evidence. This includes expert assessments and scientific studies that substantiate the product's benefits.

A key consideration in this context for choosing the right ingredients’ claim is the differentiation between in vitro and in vivo studies. While in vitro studies can provide valuable insights into ingredient properties, they should not be used to imply the same clinical outcomes as in vivo studies. The challenge lies in extrapolating the properties of ingredients to the final product, ensuring that the claims made are supported by evidence and reflect the product's actual performance.

While designing a product’s efficacy only based on the ingredients’ claims substantiation, it is important to use the exact concentration used in in vivo studies for ingredients. Furthermore the finished products’ claims should be attributed to the ingredients rather than the product itself, while there is no clinical study for the finished products.

One of the most challenging areas for evaluating ingredient claims is the emerging trend of neurocosmetics. These claims focus on improving skin health and mental well-being by influencing the Skin-Brain connection. However, in making such claims, it is essential to adhere to the basic principles of cosmetic definitions.

According to regulatory definitions, a cosmetic product's function is primarily to clean, perfume, change appearance, protect, or correct body odour. Claims that extend beyond these functions, such as those suggesting mood enhancement or stress reduction, can be challenging to substantiate within the regulatory framework. While psychoneurological studies may demonstrate connections between cosmetic ingredients and mood, such claims for the finished products often border on medical definitions, which fall outside the scope of cosmetics. Hence, before getting excited about novel neurocosmetic actives, it is important to consider what would be acceptable claims for the finished products in the framework and definition of cosmetics.

In recent years, sustainability has become a significant focus in the cosmetics industry. Claims around concepts like "eco-friendly," "green," and "kind to the planet" are increasingly popular. However, these environmental claims must be carefully substantiated.

Marketers must ensure that any environmental claims about their products are based on the entire life cycle of the product, from manufacture to disposal. If a general claim cannot be justified, a more limited claim about specific aspects or ingredients may be appropriate. This approach ensures that sustainability claims are truthful and not misleading.

In response to the ongoing climate crisis, in the UK the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) and the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) launched the Climate Change and the Environment (CCE) project in 2021. This initiative aims to ensure that environmental claims in advertising are not misleading or irresponsible, further emphasizing the importance of truthful and substantiated claims in the cosmetics industry (2).

In the EU, Directive (EU) 2024/825 focuses on restricting certain misleading claims on cosmetic artworks, such as: Generic claims such as environmentally friendly, eco-friendly, green, nature's friend, ecological, environmentally correct, climate friendly, gentle on the environment (3).

The EU Commission carried out two inventories of environmental claims looking at 150 environmental claims to evaluate clarity, unambiguity, accuracy and verifiability. The 2020 study found that a considerable share of environmental claims (53.3%) provide vague, misleading or unfounded information about products’ environmental characteristics across the EU and across a wide range of product categories.

As the cosmetics industry continues to evolve, the importance of truthful and substantiated claims cannot be overstated. Regulatory frameworks like Article 20 of the UK and EU Cosmetics Regulations and EU Regulation 655/2013 provide a robust foundation for ethical marketing practices. By adhering to these guidelines, the industry can maintain consumer trust and ensure that products are marketed responsibly.

In a world where consumers are increasingly informed and discerning, the power of words must be wielded with care. By upholding the principles of legal compliance, truthfulness, evidential support, honesty, fairness, and informed decision-making, the cosmetics industry can continue to thrive while maintaining the integrity of its claims. As new trends and challenges emerge, the commitment to transparency and consumer protection remains paramount, ensuring that the industry operates with integrity and responsibilities.