Ingredients Policy
Together with always placing safety at the top of our list,
we select the ingredients we use with consideration for the environmental impact
and social ethics when developing our products.
To ensure that our products are safe to use, we answer your questions
concerning the ingredients used in the products with transparency.
Ingredients List
Sulfates
About the ingredient
Sulfates are a type of surfactant that have the properties of foaming when used with water and dissolving oil in water.
They are used in cleansing agents to cleanse the skin and hair by helping to mix water and dirt so that they can be rinsed away.
Sulfates can cause irritation to the skin when used in high concentrations, but we have confirmed that they pose no safety issues when used in our products.
There are also concerns about carcinogenicity, but there is no clear scientific evidence and they are not included in the list of carcinogens reported by international organizations and dedicated national agencies.
Our formulation policy
Sulfates used in our products are sodium lauryl sulfate and sodium laureth sulfate.
In accordance with KOSÉ’s safety standards, these are used mainly in rinse-off products in minimal amounts that will not irritate the scalp or skin.
Trace amounts may also be used to maintain the quality of raw materials.
Fragrances
About the ingredient
Fragrances contain a number of essential oils and chemicals, and there are concerns that some of the ingredients are allergenic and cause irritation.
Our formulation policy
We comply with the laws and regulations of each country and region, evaluate fragrances in accordance with the International Fragrance Association (IFRA) standards and KOSÉ’s safety standards, and use fragrances for which safety has been confirmed in our products.
In addition, we obtain and verify the latest information on safety and laws and regulations regarding fragrances in each country and region when developing our products.
We also offer fragrance-free products based on customer requests.
UV absorbers
About the ingredient
UV inhibitors are ingredients used in cosmetics to effectively protect the skin from harmful UV rays, and are broadly classified into two types: UV absorbers and UV scattering agents .
Among these, UV absorbers selectively absorb UV rays to prevent harmful UV rays from causing sunburn and affecting the skin, as well as prevent UV rays from degrading the quality of cosmetics.
Certain UV absorbers are suspected endocrine disruptors and are being investigated. In addition, their impact on coral life in the ocean has been debated, and the sale and use of products that contain them have been banned in some countries and regions, including the state of Hawaii in the United States.
Our formulation policy
We comply with the laws and regulations of each country and region, evaluate each UV absorber according to KOSÉ’s safety standards, and use UV absorbers that have been confirmed to be safe in our products.
In addition, we obtain and verify the latest information on the safety of UV absorbers and their impact on the environment when developing our products.
We also offer UV absorber-free sunscreens based on customer requests.
BHT (Butylated hydroxytoluene)
About the ingredient
BHT is a stabilizer that acts as an antioxidant in products.
It is being investigated for concerns about its endocrine disrupting properties.
Our formulation policy
We fully comply with the laws and regulations of each country and region and use the minimum amounts when necessary to maintain the quality of our products in accordance with KOSÉ’s safety standards.
Silicones
About the ingredient
Silicones are synthetic polymers that are added for conditioning hair and enhancing texture.
Silicones are very safe ingredients.
Except for special silicones, they wash off in shampooing and do not remain on your hair.
On the other hand, there are indications that some silicones may persist in the environment, but their long-term effects are not clear.
Our formulation policy
We use silicones in accordance with KOSÉ’s safety standards with consideration for minimizing environmental impact.
We also offer non-silicone hair products based on customer requests.
Talc
About the ingredient
Talc is a type of mineral powder comprised mainly of hydrous magnesium silicate, and it has excellent smoothness, spreadability, and adsorption properties.
There are concerns that talc contains asbestos as impurities, which is a carcinogen.
Our formulation policy
We select and use asbestos-free, high-purity talc in our products.
Tar dyes
About the ingredient
Tar dyes are a type of synthetic colorant and a color component with high saturation that are primarily used in makeup products to produce vivid makeup effects.
There are concerns that some tar dyes may contain carcinogens as impurities.
Our formulation policy
We fully comply with the laws and regulations of each country and region as well as voluntary industry standards, evaluate tar dyes in accordance with KOSÉ’s safety standards and use them in our products at appropriate concentrations.
We also obtain and verify the latest information on dyes when developing our products.
Palm oil
About the ingredient
Palm oil is obtained from oil palms, and the glycerin, fatty acids, and their compounds produced from this oil are used in cosmetics for various purposes.
The destruction of tropical rainforests and human rights issues in the development of oil palm plantations have been pointed out.
Our formulation policy
KOSÉ is a member of the Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and is working toward sustainable palm oil sourcing.
BHA (Butylated hydroxyanisole)
About the ingredient
BHA is a stabilizer used as an antioxidant for products.
BHA is on the list of carcinogens of international organizations as a carcinogen.
Our formulation policy
In accordance with KOSÉ’s safety standards, we do not use BHA.
Phthalates
About the ingredient
Phthalates are used as plasticizers in plastics.
There are concerns that they are endocrine disruptors.
Our formulation policy
We do not use phthalates in our products.
We also select appropriate container materials to prevent contamination of products from containers.
Impurities
About the ingredient
Some impurities are carcinogenic and allergenic.
Ingredients made by chemical synthesis can be controlled to low levels of impurities by ultimately purifying them in the manufacturing process.
In addition, ingredients derived from natural sources can be controlled to a certain level of impurities by carefully examining the supply source.
Our formulation policy
Through evaluating the raw materials we use and setting our own control standards, we keep the concentration of impurities, including heavy metals, acrylamide, formaldehyde, diethanolamine, 1,4-dioxane, asbestos, and organic solvents, in our products as low as possible.
In addition, we continually obtain and verify the latest information on the laws and regulations of each country and region regarding impurities and their safety when developing our products.
Preservatives
About the ingredient
Preservatives are used to maintain the hygienic quality of cosmetics from the time they are opened until they are used up.
Preservatives are suspected as potentially causing irritation to the skin.
In addition, certain preservatives are being investigated for concerns of allergic reactions, endocrine disruption, and carcinogenicity.
Our formulation policy
We fully comply with the laws and regulations of each country and region, evaluate each preservative according to KOSÉ’s safety standards, develop formulations that prevent the growth of microorganisms, and use preservatives that have been confirmed to be safe in our products at minimum levels.
Only those confirmed to be safe in accordance with KOSÉ’s safety standards are used. These are benzoic acid, salicylic acid, sorbic acid, dehydroacetic acid, and chlorphenesin, in addition to parabens (mainly methylparaben and ethylparaben) and phenoxyethanol.
We do not use any formaldehyde free preservatives, triclosan, methylisothiazolinone/
methylchloroisothiazolinone, or phenol that do not meet KOSÉ’s safety standards.
We also offer paraben-free products and preservative-free products based on customer requests.
Microbeads
About the ingredient
Microbeads are microplastic particles less than 5 mm in diameter formulated in wipe-off and rinse-off cosmetics as scrubbing agents for exfoliation and cleansing purposes.
There are concerns regarding the environmental impact of microbeads as they reach rivers and oceans as a result of product use.
Although their long-term effects are not clear, microbeads have been banned in many countries and regions, including the United States.
Our formulation policy
We have not used microbeads in wipe-off and rinse-off cosmetics since January 2018.
In addition to microbeads, we are closely monitoring trends in laws and regulations pertaining to microplastics in each country and region, and are preparing to be able to respond swiftly to changes going forward.
Petrolatum
About the ingredient
Petrolatum is a hydrocarbon oil in paste form with moisturizing properties.
There have been concerns that petrolatum contains impurities that are carcinogenic.
However, highly purified petrolatum is currently known to be a safe substance, free from such impurities.
Our formulation policy
We use highly purified petrolatum from which ingredients harmful to humans have been eliminated to the maximum extent.