Brands need to innovate to future-proof natural cosmetic ingredient supply and avoid shortages as extreme weather events are threatening crop security, according to trend forecaster WGSN.
In a report, Sophie Benson and the WGSN beauty team said controlled environment agriculture (CEAs), such as greenhouses and vertical farms, can grow natural cosmetic ingredients, regardless of season or conditions.
The report said innovative CEAs are creating resilient agriculture spaces where the environment can be controlled and circular farming principles can be implemented to lower crops’ reliance on water and energy.
“Partner with farmers who use CEAs to future-proof ingredient supply and offer improved yields and potency of botanicals,” it said.
The report cited contract manufacturer Capsum (France) which found that when controlling growing conditions in its vertical-farmed ingredients, it saw a threefold increase in polyphenols compared to traditional growth conditions.
WGSN said challenging conditions also provide the perfect lab for testing and creating resilient crop strains and ingredients.
It said businesses can collaborate with universities, physicists, and space agencies to integrate space technology into climate-resilient ingredient developments and selections.
“Testing products in space and ‘space-mining’ ingredients will raise concerns surrounding sustainability and ethics as human-driven space exploration is polluting the cosmos with space junk. Be considerate of space environments and avoid exploitative approaches in orbit,” the report added. – Press release
