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You have probably heard the phrase "farm to table" at some point. Many schools and communities have implemented systems to provide farm-to-table meals. Farm to table does not have a cut and dry definition, however, it entails that the food you eat is sourced locally in hopes to give you fresh ingredients while simultaneously, positively impacting the environment from less transportation and other harmful chemicals used in processing. The skin is not an impenetrable barrier, and what we put on sinks deeper. So consumers and brands are becoming more aware of what they apply, hence the farm to face movement. Understanding what we put into our bodies is just as crucial as knowing the truth about what we put ON our bodies.
1. What makes a farm to face product?
2. Some eco and face friendly products
The average woman uses more than 20 different cosmetic products every day, according to research from In-Cosmetics. As a consequence, an average of 4lb 6oz of toxic compounds are absorbed through their skin (and bloodstream) each year. That's a significant quantity of toxins that, over time, could pose serious risks to one's health.
Farm to face skincare brands use fresh ingredients that are obtained locally or produced on the premises where those beauty products are created. This ensures the purest quality of the products and ensures the availability of the freshest ingredients (ideally free of potentially harmful toxins).
Compared to standard skincare components from larger brands, these products are often cultivated and harvested in smaller batches, ensuring better and cleaner extraction methods as well as the preservation of their high vitamin, mineral, and antioxidant content.
The sustainability and transparency of their goods throughout the production and manufacturing processes are a priority for brands that create farm to face products. Consumers want and are now expecting this total transparency from their beauty companies more than ever before.
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This movement goes far beyond individual skin health and wellbeing. In addition to consumers wanting safe, effective, and pleasant skincare products, those products must also align with their personal values. Consumers want to purchase goods from businesses that are just as conscious of the ethical and social issues as they are of the skin-improving advantages.
Research has made us very aware of how our environment and the undesirable aspects that come with it negatively affect our skin over time. In order to tackle these problems, it makes sense that consumers are now demanding transparency through every step of production to ensure that eco-freindly strategies are being used throughout the process, from farm to face.
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The best farm to face products will be those you find at your local farmer's market or somewhere within your community. If this is not an option, you can purchase from brands with an online presence. The downside to ordering online is the additional carbon footprint from shipping, but many companies use carbon offset practices to help alleviate this.
As always, it is important to do your own research into companies and their products. Since the term face to farm has no specific outlines, it is up to you to determine if their standards meet yours. Here are a few to start:
Mark Veeder began his journey in skincare when he saw a unique plant with green flowers in his yard in upstate New York. After examining the green blossom, he found that it was indeed a new and unusual form of echinacea purpurea. It has three times the amount of natural antioxidants than regular echinacea, making it an incredible skincare ingredient.
Stemming from this discovery, Mark developed Farmacy, and this plant, which is now patented and only available from Farmacy, serves as the foundation for all of the company's products. All other ingredients used by Farmacy are grown or produced locally, and the company even collaborates with local, organic farms to increase their environmental sustainability.
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This Australian natural skincare company with its own farmland in the Adelaide Hills is another fantastic farm to face beauty brand. Jurlique was founded by Dr. Jurgen Klein, a biochemist, and his wife Ulrike.
The Jurlique bio-organic farm is unpolluted, unspoiled, and ideal for a farm to face beauty business to take shape because it is surrounded by nothing but lush, green fields and clear air. Many of the brand's well-known botanicals are grown on their farm, and great care is taken to guarantee their continued perfection via cultivation and meticulous selection.
It seems likely that farm to face skincare products will expand given the demand increase for clean, vegan, organic, and cruelty-free cosmetic products. However, simply seeing a label that says farm to face, or any of the other “clean” terms is not doing your research. If you want to be certain that a product or brand that you are using and its ingredients are up to par, taking the time to read into the ingredients list as well as background information on the company is worth it.
Websites like INCIDecoder and the EWG Skin Deep Database can also be helpful in discerning harmful ingredients inside your products. All in all, the concept of face to farm is amazing, but, in practice, there are simply not enough regulations for a speedy transition from traditional products and ingredients. On the journey to clean beauty, one step at a time is still good progress.
Written by Kiana St. Onge
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