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| Issue 31 |  |
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| Category | Titel | Author | ||
| Show Case | Herbalia, Plantactiv and Aloveria — High-quality plant extracts for cosmetics | Sybille Buchwald-Werner |
Natural raw materials are very much in demand in cosmetics. In skin and hair care formulations, traditional and exotic botanical extracts are in the first place among active ingredients. They may be strategically used in many ways to substantiate product claims.
In the facial skin care sector, the efficacy of botantical extracts may, for example, be used for such claims as moisturizing, soothing and restructuring of the skin. Extracts from aloe vera, marigold, linden or camomile are applied in numerous, internationally newly launched products, which have soothing, anti-microbial and anti-irritating effects.
Not every plant extract fulfills the requirements for the use of real claim substantiations. High-quality plant extracts with a natural content of active ingredients which provide the desired efficacy are applied in a series of internationally newly launched products, such as the Herbalia, Plantactiv and Aloveria product range.
The following table gives an overview of the botanical extracts offered by Cognis. The plant extracts of the Herbalia range are offered as standardized and purified extracts. Pure products are available in the Plantactiv range.
Table: Botanicals Portfolio
| Standardized
Herbalia* Extracts |
Purified
Herbalia Extracts |
Pure Products:
Plantactiv* |
|
| Herbalia
Balm Mint |
Herbalia
Grape |
Plantactiv
Centella |
Aloveria* |
| Herbalia Bearberry |
Herbalia
Green Tea |
Plantactiv
Ruscus |
|
| Herbalia Birch |
Plantactiv
Aesculus |
||
| Herbalia Butcher's
Broom |
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| Herbalia Camomile |
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| Herbalia
Centella |
Licorice
Types: |
||
| Herbalia Gingko |
Plantactiv
GLA 18 |
||
| Herbalia Ginseng |
Plantactiv
AGL |
||
| Herbalia Horse
Chestnut |
Plantactiv
PGL |
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| Herbalia Linden |
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| Herbalia Nettle
|
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| Herbalia
Olive |
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| Herbalia Passiflora |
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| Herbalia
Red Clover |
* Herbalia, Plantactiv and Aloveria are registered trademarks of the Cognis group.
Botanical extracts are solid or liquid concentrates which are obtained from dried vegetable plant material. They contain a multitude of components and work synergistically. The manufacturer is faced with the challenge to define the quality of a botanical material and to make it reproducible.
To secure a high quality of plant extracts, a number of basic requirements has to be fulfilled in the production. Three criteria are of importance. Firstly, guidelines for the selection of raw materials, and secondly a validated production process to guarantee a high content of the active material are necessary. As the last step in the production of botanicals, appropriate analytical control parameters are required.
In the selection of the raw material it is of major importance to ensure that the raw material used is always obtained from the same subspecies of the plant because subspecies differ in their composition and in the concentration of the components. If the raw material is collected in the wild, its identity has to be proven. The part in which the active ingredient is identified is furthermore of importance, since leaves, for example, contain other substances than roots or blossoms.
Secondly, a validated production process that ensures a high active content is required. Manufacturers will then be able to substantiate claims made about specific effects of a botanical product. For every plant an optimal process has to be developed so that a consistent quality is guaranteed. By means of percolation, a complete extraction method in which the solvent is added continuously to the raw material, the highest content of actives is obtained. By using a mild spray-drying process these extracts may be further concentrated. Pure natural plant extracts provide the highest efficacy.
Quality control is a third major point with regard to the production of botanical extracts. The concentration of the substances which are responsible for the efficacy is measurable with modern analytical methods. This quality control tool is called standardization. Standardization means that the plant extract contains a specific concentration of the active substance. As the active ingredient is present at the same concentration in each batch, the extract has a controlled, consistent and certified
quality.
If a cosmetic manufacturer wants to use botanical extracts to substantiate the claims of his product, only standardized extracts and isolated substances fulfill the requirements for this use. The product safety of many plant extracts which are available today and which have neither been tested toxicologically nor dermatologically is often based on literature references or on experience from the traditional use of the plants.
In high-quality extracts this comparison is not always possible due to the high content of the plant ingredients. Therefore, toxicological and dermatological safety assessments are highly recommended.
Contact address :
Cognis Deutschland GmbH & Co. KG
Postfach 13 01 64
D-40551 Düsseldorf Germany
Phone: ++ 49 (211) -7940-2567
FAX: ++ 49 (211) -798-2187
E-Mail: Sybille Buchwald-Werner@Cognis.com
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