Glitter gains: Award-winning eco-friendly product sparkles at China launch

UK-based firm Ronald Britton Ltd launched Bioglitter last year at in-cosmetics Global where it picked up a Gold award.

It is now extending its reach into Asia by partnering with Hong Kong-based Sethic Innovations to distribute Bioglitter in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

Environmentally-safe glitter

Florence Hong, product manager at Sethic Innovations, told CosmeticsDesign-Asia​ that the product reception at Personal Care and Homecare Ingredients (PCHi) 2019, has been very positive.

During the event, Bioglitter picked up the Fountain Award in the Green/Sustainable category.

“We are very confident about the product because Bioglitter has no similar competitor in the market,” ​said Hong.

Unlike traditional glitter, Bioglitter is made from cellulose derived from hardwood trees rather than plastic. This allows the product to degrade naturally in the environment.

Bioglitter was independently tested by Organic Waste Systems (OWS) and ISO 14851 and proven to degrade naturally in fresh water.

Results showed that the majority of Bioglitter degrades in the natural environment after only four weeks.

“Our glitter passed the most challenging tests compared to other standards. We’re talking about many tests under strict conditions,” ​said Hong.

Bioglitter’s ability to degrade in fresh water further ensures that it will not pollute our oceans, added Hong.

Limitations and potentials

The cellulose content is said to make it more comfortable on the skin because it is softer than plastic.

It can be used in a variety of cosmetic products such as eyeshadows and lipsticks, as well as temporary tattoos that are child-safe.

According to Hong, Bioglitter’s limitation is its compatibility with water or acetone, even though there are no issues in oil-based formulas.

“It is not easy to achieve stability. We talked to formulators and their feedback is that plastic glitters also has this kind of problem. We need to find a solution to avoid this kind of problem.”​

She added: “I think maybe Bioglitter will not replace the traditional glitters soon, but the demand will grow more and more.”​

There are currently two Bioglitter products, Bioglitter Sparkle and Bioglitter Pure.

Bioglitter Sparkle contains 90% biodegradable content and 92% plastic-free. The company is working on making all its products plastic-free in the future.

It has already done so with Bioglitter Pure, the company’s latest offering. This version is also 96% biodegradable and 100% aluminium-free.

Sethic Innovations will be launching Bioglitter Pure in the Chinese market in April this year, said Hong.

“Biodegradability is a trending topic now and many of our customers are requesting for this product. This includes local Chinese companies. We believe this will be a hot trend in China in the future,” ​said Hong.