Study reveals organic cosmetics often are not

Organic cosmetics are a hit and the market has grown rapidly, but buyers should beware, according to a Seoul-based consumer research institute.

Consumers Korea said yesterday it investigated 50 organic cosmetic brands - 24 local and 26 imported - and found 35 brands violated the Cosmetics Act and Advertising and Displaying Guidelines for Organic Cosmetics issued by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.

Twenty-one brands, including big names such as L’Occitane and Logona, did not report the percentage of organic content on their products.

Eleven, including local organic brands Boryeong Medience and Woongjin Coway, labeled products as organic even though their organic content was about 10 percent, far below organic cosmetics certification standards of 95 percent.

Cosmetics claiming to be organic can be distributed and sold because there is no surveillance and follow-up system, said Consumers Korea.

“The absence of detailed criteria for the products with organic material content less than 95 percent is also a cause for misrepresentation and the exaggerated advertisements,” the institute said. “Consumers have a right to know and the right to know their options.”

By Kim Jung-yoon [kjy@joongang.co.kr]