Turn the jar over: how to read a skincare ingredient list

How to read a skincare ingredient list. Five checks for any label, ours included.

1. Start at the end. That is where the decisions are.

The top of an ingredient list tells you what a product is mostly made of. In a cream, that is usually water or oil.

Under the Australian and New Zealand cosmetics labelling rules, ingredients at 1% or more are listed from most to least, and ingredients below 1% may be listed in any order. So the end of the list is not always a ranking. It is where the preservative, the fragrance and the colour can sit, along with the botanical that was on the front of the pack in large friendly letters. Read the top once, then start at the end and work your way back.

2. "Natural" is a marketing claim. The ingredient list is the evidence.

"Natural" on the front is the brand's own description. It does not tell you what is in the jar, or who, if anyone, has checked it. The list on the back does. Read it, whatever the front says.

Look for a single word standing in for something. Under the Australian and New Zealand standard, "fragrance" or "parfum" can appear on a list without naming what is in it. The fragrance industry's own 2025 transparency list runs to 3,691 ingredients, 3,312 of them used for scent.

Look for "PEG", "polyethylene" or "-eth-" inside any word. The US FDA names these as markers for ingredients that can carry a trace of 1,4-dioxane, a by-product of ethoxylation. The FDA calls 1,4-dioxane a potential human carcinogen, and the US National Toxicology Program lists it as reasonably anticipated to be one, based on animal studies. The FDA also says levels in cosmetics have fallen significantly over time since consumers asked more questions. Now you know what the marker means.

3. Do not trust a word. Trust an audit.

A certification mark is different from a word on the front of the pack, like "natural" or "botanical". An independent certifier sets the rules, audits the maker against them, and can withdraw the mark. In New Zealand, mandatory rules on describing a product as organic without official certification are still coming (the national organic law starts on 31 March 2028), which is why independent certification matters now and is the only thing you can rely on.

Here is what that looks like for us.

BioGro's health and body care standard prohibits phenoxyethanol, cocamidopropyl betaine, ethanolamides, polysorbates, alkyl sulphates (such as sodium lauryl sulphate), alkyl ether sulphates (such as sodium laureth sulphate), and the process of ethoxylation. It also lists the preservatives that are allowed. Ours is Geogard 221, which is one preservative made of two named components, dehydroacetic acid and benzyl alcohol. Both of those components are on that BioGro permitted list.

That is not our opinion. It is the standard we are audited against and we align with and believe in.

4. Not all certification is equal. Know what stands behind the mark.

You likely have noticed that there are multiple certified organic marks. Certifiers write their own rules, so two "certified" organic marks can ask for different things. Check which standard stands behind the mark, and what it rules out or in.

We choose to align with BioGro as for cosmetics we know that they have a high standard and the green washing was never my thing.

5. We find plants less forgiving to formulate with. We did it anyway.

In our experience as formulators utilising only plants, we know that synthetic and heavily modified ingredients are easier to work with. They tend to give a consistent texture and keep a cream stable in heat and in cold.

Plants are less forgiving. Plant oils oxidise as they age. A cream that contains water needs a preservative. A blend of oils, butters and water has to be formulated to stay together and stay stable. Getting that right takes careful formulation and years of trial and error.

It is the harder road, and it is the one we took, as for us it aligns with our Ethics.

Try it on our cream

Here is our Untouched Face Day Cream. Fifteen ingredients, each one named. From the end: Xanthan Gum. Guar Gum. Sunflower Wax. Rosemary Extract. Geogard 221. Evening Primrose CO2. Rose Hip Seed CO2. Cocoa Butter. Olive Emulsifier. Jojoba Oil. Shea Butter. Sunflower Oil. Argan Oil. Apricot Kernel Oil. And at the top, Calendula tea.

No PEG. Nothing with "-eth-" in it. No "fragrance" or "parfum" line. Geogard 221 is the preservative, and it is named.

The short version

• Read the top once to see what the product is mostly made of.
• Then turn the jar and read from the end. Ingredients under 1% can be in any order.
• Look for "fragrance" or "parfum", and "PEG" or "-eth-" in a word. These are where the nasties may be hiding.
• Ignore "natural" on the front. Read the back. And you decide if it holds up.
• Look for an independent certification mark, and check what its standard actually rules out and in.

We would rather you checked. Turn the jar over.