Transforming sugar beets and coffee grounds into upcycled beauty innovations

07 Nov 2023 --- With the rise of circular solutions, industry has been transforming organic waste into luxurious personal care ingredients, rich with skin- and hair-protecting actives. Exploring how the eco-footprint of upcycling holds up against traditional sourcing methods, Personal Care Insights speaks to International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) and Kaffe Bueno on noteworthy emergent ingredients and possible challenges in the evolving field.

“Upcycled ingredients are rapidly gaining traction, driven by a convergence of sustainability concerns, consumer demand for eco-conscious products and the industry’s commitment to reducing waste,” remarks Alejandro Franco, co-founder and CCO of Kaffe Bueno. 

“However, as upcycled ingredients penetrate the mainstream, upcycling as a selling point will naturally weaken. The question will naturally arise — is upcycling inherently sustainable?”

“The answer is, of course not. Diverging a biomass from its historical fate toward the trash helps avoid emissions from one value chain. That is great. But the question really is — or will be — is the output of your upcycling process measurably more sustainable than existing alternatives?”

He stresses that to answer the question, companies have to carry out a holistic analysis of the value chain. These frequent assessments can determine that upcycled ingredients are in fact less harmful or more beneficial to the environment than the natural or virgin, petrochemical and synthetic alternatives.

On the other hand, Franco claims that “sustainability is not enough” for consumer repurchase, but the “story behind upcycled ingredients serves as the hook.” Regardless, performance and price are ultimately deciding points.

Solution to fluctuating raw material availability
Franco explains that natural ingredients have several disadvantages in manufacturing, to which upcycled ingredients can present a solution.“As an associate member of the UFA since 2019, IFF was one of the first ingredient suppliers to receive the upcycled certification in the cosmetic active category,” shares Gherardi.

“The problem with natural ingredients in general has historically been high prices, underperformance and quality unreliability. This is keeping volumes relatively low versus synthetics or petrochemicals, hence, costs continue to be higher, so the price remains high. Plus, of course the effect of climate change, which impacts nature’s ability to continue yielding fresh crops,” he outlines.

“This is why we have always focused on efficacy data and economies of scale. Our [upcycled] ingredients are scientifically proven to work on par or better than alternatives, and thanks to our scalability we are able to be competitive.”

Furthermore, Carole Gherardi, market segment lead of Personal Care at IFF, stresses that for many beauty brands, achieving zero waste and circular economy goals can prove challenging and require a “layered” approach. 

“Using upcycled ingredients aligns with one of the environmentally sustainable values that resonates most with consumers: waste reduction,” she underscores. “According to a study by Deloitte, 48% of surveyed UK consumers have chosen brands that practice waste reduction when deciding to shop sustainably for beauty and personal care products.”

She adds: “Upcycled ingredients represent a powerful tool to reduce the environmental impact of products and tell an important sustainability story at the same time.”

Repurposing spent sugar beets and coffee grounds
Gherardi points to IFF’s Genencare OSMS range of osmolytes, which has been Upcycled Certified by the Upcycled Food Association (UFA) since 2022.

“The Genencare OSMS range is extracted from the by-product of sugar beet (Beta vulgaris) processing known as sugar beet molasses. IFF developed a proprietary, technology-driven ‘natural betaine production process’ that helps sugar mills to increase sugar yields during the desugarization process.”

“At the same time, that side stream of betaine molasses is upcycled into the Genencare OSMS range in the form of highly purified crystalline powders, betaine, inositol and micronized betaine.” These naturally occur in the epidermal layers of the skin. 

On the other hand, Kaffe Bueno spotlights its Kaffoil, used across over 20 brands in over 15 countries. 

“In a hair oil, for example, Kaffoil is used as an active ingredient, and after one single application, it increases hair shine by over 300%, strengthens hair preventing breakage and split ends by over 90% and repairs chemically damaged hair,” shares Franco, also adding that it showed superior results than argan oil in some cases.

“Replacing argan oil with Kaffoil means that the brand or manufacturer can reduce their Scope 3 emissions, since our data demonstrates it is two to 3.4 times more sustainable than argan oil.

Furthermore in recent research, bioactive compounds like polyphenols, carotenoids and chlorophylls were extracted from cruciferous vegetables, such as Kale waste using natural deep eutectic solvents. This was suggested to “develop sustainable processes for the production of natural antioxidants and pigments,” write the authors.

Processing challenges 
In challenges of working with upcycled ingredients, Gherardi claims: “Good upcycled ingredients are not different from other ingredients in performance or compatibility, rather it’s about the end-to-end sustainability mindset that needs to go into their sourcing and production.”Franco claims that “sustainability is not enough” for consumer repurchase, but the “story behind upcycled ingredients serves as the hook.”

Franco stresses the inherent challenges of working with biomaterials: “Upcycled ingredients are, by nature, natural. This means they bring in bioactive compounds, which aside from being beneficial for skin, they bring in some color and odor, naturally.”

“This has been and continues to be a challenge for the industry, because although everyone says they are transitioning to natural, once you talk to a formulator they want everything to be white or transparent. My answer always is, nature is not white.”

He flags this issue as how “old standards” are hindering the industry from progressing. “Today’s consumer is willing to accept a product that is not white if they know the color is caused by a natural ingredient, which in fact is the one bringing in the benefits for skin.”

In addition, he stresses that upcycled ingredient production “represents more layers of difficulty,” as they often retain moisture after their initial processing, meaning they can be more prone to oxidation and microbiological contamination.

Anticipated trends across categories
Franco at Kaffe Bueno anticipates seeing brands exploring unconventional sources for upcycling, moving beyond just food waste. “This could include by-products from other industries or even post-consumer recycled materials,” he notes.

He also expects regulatory bodies to offer more support as upcycling becomes more evident. This can be in forms of incentives or certifications to encourage upcycled ingredient use.

“The rise of partnerships between personal care brands and suppliers, waste management companies, and even competitors will become more common. Collaborative efforts can drive innovation and streamline the upcycling process,” continues Franco.

“The role of technology in identifying, processing and enhancing upcycled ingredients will be pivotal. From AI-driven waste sorting to advanced extraction techniques, technology will play a crucial role in maximizing the potential of upcycled ingredients.”

Ensuring quality and safety
To achieve quality ingredient standards, Gherardi highlights that IFF works with long-standing partners for raw materials, and processes them to create highly purified ingredients for the personal care industry. “The processes follow cosmetic GMP standards and are subject to rigorous quality assurance and control,” she states.

This includes adhering to set criteria established by the certifier Upcycled Food Association, which adds credibility and integrity to the certifying process. 

“The UFA has been extremely helpful for us and for the industry in providing a clear set of criteria in order to create upcycled ingredients for beauty and personal care,” notes Gherardi.

“We have developed multiple steps across our value chain that ensure our ingredients comply not only with regulatory but also market and global customer standards,” concludes Franco.

By Venya Patel