Cosmetics certification. Analysis comparative focusing on the Network of Bogotá Agroecological Markets Region, Colombia

Abstract

There is a rising trend in the demand and supply of natural and ecological cosmetics, unfortunately, Colombian regulations have a legal gap, which is why they fail to promote a sector that brings prosperity and sustainability. This investigation analyzed mechanisms to determine whether a cosmetic is natural, ecological, agroecological and/or sustainable through literature review, which, in 2022, will certify some cosmetics as being “natural and ecological” standards in the Red de Mercados Agroecológicas de Bogotá Region (RMABR). A public standard and seven private standards that require a majority of natural, ecological and agroecological ingredients are compared. According to its own standard, all RMABR certified cosmetics are natural, and 12.5% ​​are agroecological. The conventional mechanism for certifying a cosmetic is the documentary and in situ verification of a private standard, sometimes regulated by a public standard. Few RMABR cosmetics are agroecological due to difficulty in accessing the ingredients.