We often get asked why we bother certifying our soaps. It’s something most other makers ask us – why bother at all certifying bath bombs, bath salts, soaps? It’s just for the bath, right? Well, no. It’s not. Anything that can be classed for use in the bath or on the body has to legally be safety assessed and certified, and must meet legislative guidelines. The legislation in question was previously known as the Cosmetics Products (Safety) Regulations, since replaced by the new EU Regulation 1223/2009 (Cosmetics Regulation) which has been in force in the European Union since 11 July 2013.
There are a million different reasons why this matters. The biggest and most important reason of all is for public safety. Many ingredients that were historically used by soap-makers have now been researched and discovered to be harmful and are now banned. Many crafters and home-makers don’t know about – or have access to – the extensive medical research that is being undertaken on a daily basis to ensure that we only use the kind of ingredients that are kind to skin. It’s important that when we create a new soap, it’s sent off for scientific testing, recipe evaluation, and concentration evaluation. Our assessors look at our chosen ingredients and help us to keep all of our chosen essential oils and ingredients below the “safe level” and well away from any irritant levels. They help us keep up to date on restricted ingredients that may be potentially harmful, or pose a risk as potential allergens. Some essential oils have been re-regulated in the last few years and are now only allowed in significantly lower doses; other ingredients have been banned due to overuse and “at risk” extinction status. We honour and respect these rules, and adapt our soapmaking accordingly.
This does mean that we’re incredibly restricted in what we can use in our soaps, but this is a really, really good thing. It means that we pay extra careful attention to where we get our ingredients from, the quality of the ingredients we use, and we keep track of absolutely every ingredient that goes into your soap. We know which farm it comes from, which batch number it was. And we track that very same information about each bar of soap, too. It means that when you buy a Bean & Boy soap, you know that it’s been triple-checked and that it’s safe to use at home. That’s the kind of reassurance that we invest in.
This is why all of our soaps are safety assessed and certified. It’s why we are proud members of the Guild of Craft Soap and Toiletry Makers. It’s why we can’t release new soaps every month (it’s very expensive and time-consuming to get recipes safety assessed). It’s why we care so much about what we do, and care that you love our soaps too. It’s why, when we say that we’ve got a new soap coming very soon to share with you, we simply can’t wait to shout out about it (yay! July 2019 here we come).
There are loads of amazing soap and toiletry makers out there who share the same ethos as us. Together, we’re in it to make sure that bath time is a safer place. When you’re choosing your next bath product – even if it’s just bath salts, a salve or a splash of bubble bath – make sure that it too has been safety assessed and certified. If you’re not sure, ask the maker.
