Soon, I’ll be reviewing the Juice Beauty Green Apple Age Defying Solutions Kit, which I actually liked, but first I wanted to fill you in on the company itself.
BASICS
According to Juice Beauty, “Juice Beauty’s organic juice solution is packed with powerful ingredients and antioxidants so every drop feeds your skin with powerful nutrients.” This company’s motto seems to be healthy skin care that comes with clinically validated age-defying results.
PRODUCTS AVAILABLE
Juice Beauty carries a wide range of products, most made with 70% organic ingredients. See a slideshow of their product collections below. Note – they carry dozens of goodies, this is just a small sample.
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laCOMPANY SUSTAINABILITY PERKS
- Uses certified organic ingredients. Although this company is not 100% organic, some certified organics, in my opinion are better than none. Every dollar that goes to organic agriculture is a good deal for humans and the planet.
- Does not test on animals according to Peta.
- Uses recycled office paper and packaging.
- This company has achieved Champion status with the Compact for Safe Cosmetics at Skin Deep and all products rated score 1-3 (low chemical concern). A downside is that very few products are reviewed at Skin Deep, which means you’re not getting a clear average score.
- They have a decent vegan range, including: Cleansing Milk, Cleansing Gel, Hydrating Mist, Antioxidant Serum, Blemish Clearing Mask, Blemish Clearing Serum, Soothing Serum, Smoothing Eye Concentrate, Green Apple Nutrient Eye Cream, USDA Organic Moisture Concentrate, Green Apple Hydration Eye Mask, Green Apple Repair Mask, Green Apple Treatment Massage Oil, Refining Finishing Powder, Blemish Clearing Powder, Stem Cellular Repair Moisturizer, Stem Cellular Repair Eye Treatment and Stem Cellular Repair Booster.
OTHER COMPANY PERKS
- All of Juice Beauty’s products are gluten-free, except for Juice Beauty’s Hydrating Mist which contains a micro-trace of gluten.
- A decent FAQ section on their website.
- Extremely well-designed, easy to navigate website.
- A fair range of products for the skin.
- The company offers some kits with smaller sized products so you can a smaller size to see if you like it, before buying a big ol’ bottle.
- Web specials are offered and updated frequently.
- Products are easy to find online and in shops.
HOW ORGANIC IS THIS COMPANY?
In terms of totally certified organic products, Juice Beauty only offers four 100% USDA certified organic items.
Overall this company offers mostly products that are about 70% organic. A vast majority of Juice Beauty products carry the, “Made with organic ingredients” label. In case you need a quick primer, any products labeled as, “Made With Organic Ingredients” must contain at least 70% organic ingredients and the remaining 30% of ingredients can be non-organic allowed ingredients or non-organic agricultural ingredients.
Any company that carries an official form of the USDA organic label, which includes labels that state “Made With Organic Ingredients” must be certified by an organic certifying agent. Juice Beauty uses Agricultural Services Certified Organic and NMDA.
- Learn about certified organic body care.
- Learn more about the debate behind organic body care certification.
IS THIS COMPANY AN ORGANIC FAKER?
Back in 2007, Juice Beauty was one of the companies named in a lawsuit filed by Dr. Bronners, in connection with the Organic Consumer Association (OCA). The lawsuit singled out companies engaging in misleading organic labeling claims. Targeted specifically, it seems, was Juice Organics, a sub-company of Juice Beauty. Currently, Juice Beauty is not on the OCA’s list of organic fakers.
Some people do not consider this a great organic company. For example, a list at Green Options, which has been passed around by various green beauty bloggers, states, “Only 4 of over 30 products actually carry the USDA Organic logo, all other 30+ products do not. To me having only 4 certified products, does not make you an organic company.” Although many people have agreed with this, and written or said that Juice Beauty is not organic, that’s not legally true, because if you’re certified, which Juice Beauty is, then yes, legally, you’re an organic company in the eyes of the USDA, which is all we have to go on in the USA.
Do I think this company is an organic faker?
I’m pretty picky when it comes to organic body care fakers (or not fakers). I look for a few things when I’m considering if a company is greenwashing – or a fake organic, including using look-alike organic labels that aren’t actually organic, as Kroger recently decided to do, peppering their catalog or website text with organic terms, or downright using “organic” in their name.
After looking over the Juice Beauty website, their press kit and their products, I don’t feel that Juice Beauty is a faker company, and here’s why:
- They don’t use “organic” in their brand name.
- They don’t use a fake organic label on their products.
- They specify which of their products are actually 100% organic.
- They have actual certifying agents and can back that up.
SOME ORGANIC CONFUSION
While I wouldn’t call this company a faker, I DO feel that Juice Beauty creates some organic confusion though. For example, Juice Beauty specifically notes:
“Most beauty products that use “organic” in their marketing use only a few organic ingredients in a water base, making the total organic content dilute and often less than 5%. Instead of the typical water base that cannot be certified “organic or pesticide free,” Juice Beauty puts over 100 USDA certified organic powerful ingredients into a 100% certified organic juice base (made from over 30 different juices) thus bringing the total organic content up to 98% in every product.”
If Juice Beauty products really contained 98% organic ingredients then I’m not sure why these products fail to carry the USDA Organic Seal, which is allowed if a product contains at least 95% organic ingredients (the remaining 5% ingredients can be non-organic allowed ingredients). The organic seal has more impact than “made with organic ingredients” so either Juice Beauty products don’t really have 98% organics in them or the other 5% of ingredients are non-allowed, non-organics. Either way, if you state that your products are 98% organic, yet don’t wear the organic seal it’s probably a little confusing for some consumers.
Another thing that’s confusing, in my opinion, is their statement that, “Most women switch to an organic lifestyle when they are pregnant because they want to protect their unborn child from harmful toxins. They continue this lifestyle change once they use Juice Beauty’s luxurious, effective products. It’s never too early or too late to start using organics! Certified organic ingredients without pesticides, parabens, propylene or butylene glycols, petroleum, sulphates, PEGs, TEA, DEA, phthalates, GMO, silicones, artificial dyes or fragrances.
The above makes it sound like by using Juice Beauty organics, you’re protecting your body, even during pregnancy, from harmful chemicals. However, organic body care doesn’t always equal chemical-free body care. Juice Beauty uses small amounts of Phenoexyethanol, Retinyl Palmitate and some other chemicals not deemed entirely safe, in their products. Again, this creates confusion for consumers.
AFFORDABLE ORGANIC PRICES
I’ve heard many people complain that Juice Beauty is expensive. I disagree. I think Juice Beauty has some very reasonably priced products, considering most are 70% organic. Their prices are also in line with other like-minded organic products.
Of the products I’ve tried, a little goes a long way too, thus increasing the value. I even felt that their 100% certified organics are well-priced. You have to remember, it costs more to create all-organic or even half-organic products. In terms of organic skin care and cosmetics, you usually get what you pay for.
COMPANY WEAKNESSES:
Beyond the organic confusion I mention above, their ingredient FAQ page only lists the natural ingredients this company uses, not all the ingrediants this company uses. Also, their blog is updated infrequently, but that’s a minor point.
OVERALL SCORE:
3.5 out of 5 little trees. 3.5 is an okay score for a company. I think they could do a little better. This is not a 100% organic company, but they pass my organic fakers test – meaning they don’t say, “Hey this is organic” when a product is clearly not. I do feel like they create some organic confusion (as noted above), which I’d like to see cleared up.
In the pros side, I actually like their products (the ones I’ve tried) and they have some decent green practices in place, along with good prices for what they offer. Overall, I’d suggest you try their small 100% organic line if you’re looking for fewer chemicals (good for pregnancy, for example) or, if you’re okay with 70% organic give some of their other products a whirl.
Soon, I’ll have a review of their age defy kit (shown above) up so stay tuned if you’re interested in specific reviews of their products.
Learn more:
See my green product rating system and green product rating criteria or read more green product reviews.
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