In-cosmetics Global live: Givaudan Active Beauty reimagines iconic industry molecules

18 Apr 2024 --- Givaudan Active Beauty is showcasing its latest launches this week at In-cosmetics Global in Paris, France. Personal Care Insights speaks to the supplier on the show floor about how it is helping its customers create sustainable solutions for the well-being market. 

“We try to reimagine iconic molecules of our industry. More and more, we’ll explore ways to offer alternatives for the beauty industry to be able to switch from petrochemical references with a dirty footprint and come up with innovative biotech solutions,” says Mathias Fleury, head of category for Active Ingredients at Givaudan Active Beauty.

Fleury breaks down how the company's products, Neuroglow, PrimalHyal 50 Life and Illuminyl 388 are shaping the current beauty landscape. 

Sun in a jar
Neuroglow is an active ingredient designed to “safely” replicate the positive effects of the sun and attain the sought-after glow. The sun is recognized for its beneficial impact on mood and energy due to vitamin D production, contributing to a tanner skin tone.

“The principle is easy — it’s basically the sun in a jar. What we wanted to achieve was to use a botanical extract. It comes from the Indigo plants cultivated in southern France,” explains Fleury.

Neuroglow is said to mimic the properties of sunlight, stimulating the production of melanin (+126%) and promoting the skin’s release of molecules such as beta-endorphin (+43%), vitamin D (+345%) and oxytocin (+229%).

“We want to mimic all of the benefits of the sun. On one side, there are pigmentation benefits, like helping your skin with tanning, helping to gain phototypes and preparing your skin for tanning, but there is also a second axis about well-being. The [product provides] that feeling you have when you’re under the sun,” the head of category for Givaudan Active Beauty continues.

Caroline Reverte, product manager at Givaudan showcases the company's active ingredients processed into personalized creams.“We have demonstrated that Neuroglow can boost the production of key hormones and vitamins. Vitamin D is the key vitamin that we synthesize while under the sun. Still, it also contains endorphins, well-being hormones and oxytocin, the love hormone that makes us feel connected and bonded with others.”

“At the clinical level, this means that not only do we tan, but we also feel better, we decrease the level of tiredness, we increase the level of affection and we solve the ‘winter blues.’”

Sustainability driving innovation
With a 91% reduction in environmental impact, PrimalHyal 50 Life is touted as the most sustainable low molecular weight hyaluronic acid in Givaudan’s portfolio.

The hyaluronic acid also provides a 92% reduction in GHG emissions, a 95% decrease in acidification and eutrophication of water, a 90% cut in non-renewable energy usage and a 75% reduction in water consumption.

“It’s a whole new way of producing hyaluronic acid. It’s a revolution for the beauty industry — that’s what we believe,” maintains Fleury.

“We obtain the same hyaluronic acid performance as before, but with a tenfold reduction in the environmental impact of our global footprint on pollution. We did things to simulate biology and strain engineering. It’s a massive change for the industry, which will now use this hyaluronic acid more competitively and has a huge impact on the environmental footprint.”

Mathias Fleury, head of category for Active Ingredients at Givaudan Active Beauty.Inclusive beauty
Givaudan Active Beauty’s Illuminyl 388 is a biotech-enhanced molecule designed through “cell-free glycosylation” to benefit diverse skin types from Africa and Asia to India and Europe.

“Illuminyl 388 is all about solving pigmentation disorders. Based on one of the most powerful natural antioxidants extracted from green tea, we augment science with biotechnology. We’ve got it from a biocatalysis reaction, making it more soluble, stable and efficient for the skin. In the end, it targets all of the main stages of the pigmentation pathway,” Fleury tells us.

Givaudan Active Beauty conducted global clinical research with more than 200 volunteers representing four skin tones — African, Asian, Indian and Caucasian, helping create an active ingredient that can:

• Improve skin radiance in two weeks.
• Enhance skin tone & luminosity in two weeks.
• Reduce pigmentation spots in one month.
• Enhance skin tone homogeneity, even tackling stubborn age spots.
• Offer unique bioavailability with an in-depth skin penetration profile.

By Sabine Waldeck, with live reporting from Anita Sharma at In-cosmetics Global in Paris, France