Leading voluntary actions

Commit for Our Planet is an unprecedented industry-wide initiative to reduce the overall environmental footprint of the cosmetics industry. It was launched in December 2022 and encourages all cosmetics and personal care companies to take part in a joint industry effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve packaging solutions and act for nature. Commit for Our Planet is based around a series of voluntary commitments, accompanied by tools to support participating companies. It works with companies in the areas of climate, packaging and nature to help drive progress across the full value chain.

To learn more, visit the Commit for Our Planet website.

In 2023, Cosmetics Europe launched COSMILE Europe, a European cosmetic ingredient database that provides reliable, verified and scientifically supported information on almost 30,000 ingredients used in cosmetics. The database is accessible on the COSMILE Europe website and available in 14 languages. It aims to help European citizens understand why certain ingredients are in their cosmetic products, which properties they have, and much more.

Cosmetics Europe also spearheaded the COSMILE Europe app, which provides another way of accessing the information in the database. The app includes additional ways to find information on cosmetic ingredients, such as the INCI list scanner. There is also an option to track ingredients that are of specific interest to consumers, for instance because they have an allergy to them.

Cosmetics play an important role in people’s everyday lives. Ingredients are the core of these products and naturally people want to know more about them. COSMILE Europe provides reliable ingredient information to European citizens in a simple and easily accessible way.

Visit cosmileeurope.eu to search the database and/or download the app.

COSMILE Europe was developed by Cosmetics Europe in partnership with the German Cosmetic, Toiletry, Perfumery and Detergent Association (IKW), in collaboration with the French Federation for Beauty Companies (FEBEA) and with the technological development support of health&media GmbH. It benefits from the involvement of 18 Cosmetics Europe national association members. Their contributions include translation of the database and website content into their respective national language(s), and promotion of the initiative at the national level.

The EU has a strong legal framework in place to prevent misleading advertising.

Key elements of this include horizontal laws, the Common Criteria Regulation and specifically for cosmetics, the European Cosmetic Products Regulation.

To further protect consumers from misleading claims, the cosmetics industry developed the Charter and Guiding Principles on Responsible Advertising and Marketing Communications. As key self-regulatory tools, they lay down the common ground for responsible advertising and marketing communications across Europe, and encompass all media channels (print, TV/radio, online), while complementing the existing comprehensive legislative framework.

The first version of the Charter was adopted in 2012 and built on Cosmetics Europe’s work to promote best practice in cosmetics advertising, which was undertaken in response to consumer concerns about potential adverse impacts that cosmetics advertising could have on both individuals and society. In 2020, the Charter was reviewed to better reflect the challenges of today’s highly digitalised world.

For further details on the Charter and Guiding Principles on Responsible Advertising and Marketing Communications, please click here.