What is Halal Beauty?
The Future of Halal-certified Cosmetics
The beauty industry is ever-expanding. Product offerings and demands that were once never heard of have ballooned into billion-dollar industries. From Refillable Packaging, to Waterless Beauty, to our Infinite Aluminum range, at Meiyume, we strive to jumpstart, inform, and spearhead the next generation of consumer demands. The next emerging sector of beauty to be on the lookout for is Halal Beauty.
Valued at $29.13 billion in 2020, the Pew Research Center reports that the Worldwide Halal Cosmetics Market is expected to inflate by 20 percent within the next 4 years. This leads to an estimated value of $80 billion by the start of 2028. The Muslim population of consumers makes up over one fifth of the entire human population, allowing for a demand of over 1.8 billion prospective consumers to market towards. Meiyume has invested in and continues to invest in the potential of the purchasing power of Muslim markets.
What is Halal?
The term “halal” translates to anything that is legal or permissible under Islamic principles. Typically, the term is used to identify the way in which an animal is slaughtered. The animal must be alive and healthy, its death must be executed while reciting a prayer of peace, all while killing the animal in the most painless and sanitary means possible. This process, also referred to as, dhabiha, involves killing through a cut to the jugular vein, carotid artery and windpipe. Animals must be alive and healthy at the time of slaughter and all blood is drained from the carcass. Other halal choices of consumption include abstaining from alcoholic beverages or pork.
How does “Halal” apply to beauty?
A “halal” meat preparation is intended to ensure the safety of both the animal byproduct and the consumer. When applied to cosmetics, this means that beauty products have been manufactured with ingredients allowable by Islamic principles. This means products cannot contain ingredients derived from blood, pigs, human body parts, predatory animals, reptiles, insects, and alcohol, as these are considered “non-halal”. However, unlike vegan or cruelty-free beauty, halal cosmetics might contain animal products or animal-derived ingredients, as long as the means of extracting the animal byproduct are compliant with Islamic Shariah law.
The approval process of ingredients, specifically active ingredients, have also been in the works of Halal Beauty. Meiyume has served as the catalyst of efficacious Halal formulations, providing Halal-certified product solutions for active ingredients such as Retinol, Vitamin C, Niacinamide, and Salicylic Acid. Examples of such formulations include the:
Including the Miraculous Retinol Serum, Miraculous Retinol Toner, Miraculous Retinol Ampoule, Ultra Brightening Cream Alpha Arbutin + Retinol and Retinol Sheet Mask
Specifically the Your Skin Bae Vitamin C 3% + Niacinamide 2% + Carrot Extract + Raspberry Toner Essence as well as the Your Skin Bae Vitamin C 3% + Niacinamide 2% + Mandarin Fruit Extract Serum
Including the Your Skin Bae Toner 1% + Zinc + Tea Tree and the Your Skin Bae Toner Salicylic Acid 1% + Zinc Serum
Halal-certified formulation criterion also requires for product to be free of genetically modified organisms (GMO) as they are considered unclean. Ingredients and packaging must be stored and manufactured in hygienic environments free of contamination. The production, packaging and storage process of halal cosmetics requires optimum level of cleanliness. In addition to inspection of raw materials and sourcing, the machinery and production chain must be inspected as well. Halal certification requires that the entire production chain must prohibit any contact of impure products during the production cycle. In the case of such contamination, the entire production cycle must be sanitized by standard HACCP regulations. Such sanitation procedures must be rigorous and documented. The means of sanitization and sanitizing products that are used on production and packaging lines must not contain alcohol as well. Alongside these requirements, the International Council of Certification and Accreditation Institution recommends to either designate production lines dedicated specially for Halal products, or to schedule Halal production immediately after thorough sanitization of production lines.
Halal Certified Cosmetics:
To be considered a Halal Beauty brand, developers must undergo certification granted by the U.S. Halal Certification. Certifications can cost up to $2,000 depending on the quantity of units inspected. Japanese conglomerate Shiseido obtained halal certification in Vietnam in 2012, and currently sells 28 halal skin-care products under the Za brand in Malaysia. Unilever also applied to Indonesia’s Muslim Council in November 2015 to have 204 products scrutinized, including key personal care brands such as Dove, Lifebuoy, Sunsilk, Clear and Tresemmé. Meanwhile Estée Lauder and Colgate-Palmolive have products that are halal-approved. Each of these product lines must be certified by manufacturers to guarantee that it does not contain any components which are not in compliance with Islamic law.
While there is a general agreed upon criterion of what Halal certified cosmetics can and cannot include, there currently is no universally agreed upon Halal certification process. Currently the Indonesian Ulema Council has implemented a halal product mandate, a law which requires applies cosmetics, foods and non-food products & services to be certified as halal. This mandate went into effect in 2019. Under this set of regulations all foreign beauty products distributed or retailed in Indonesia will be treated as non-halal unless they’ve been certified in Indonesia or by an accredited foreign certification body. While cosmetics brands have until 2026 to fully implement this law, domestic and regional halal beauty brands have long since begun this process.
Despite Halal certified products being more challenging to develop, Meiyume’s own global, award-winning manufacturing facilities, deliver mixing, and filling, cater to most formulations whether it’s powdered, wet or alcohol based.
Halal certified cosmetics and personal care products that Meiyume has helped to produce include:
A 2% BHA anti-inflammatory exfoliating toner that brightens the skin and reduces blemishes and acne scars.
Derived from soybean, Lipobelle Soyaglycone enhances collagen production and improves skin elasticity and smoothness to reduce stretch marks.
Our most recent Halal-certified product line includes the Carasun Solar Smart UV Protector Sunscreen.
Meiyume was able to work closely alongside Carasun to innovate and develop the formulation without the use of alcohol and clinically tested it to ensure its suitability for sensitive skin. The formulation is enriched with Rice Extract and CityStem to nourish the skin and protect it from free radicals. The formula has been proven to be water-resistant and sweat proof for up to 8 hours. It is also easily absorbed, does not leave a white cast, and is non-comedogenic, allowing wearers to feel fresh and comfortable even hours after application.
Together, Meiyume and Carasun were able to create a halal-certified sun care solution that alleviate skin sensitivities from prolonged heat exposure in tropical regions.
The future of Halal Beauty:
In 2017 there were only 64 cosmetics brands that had a halal certification. This number grew to 129 brands in 2018, 162 brands in 2019 and 214 brands in 2020, including both Indonesian and foreign players according to the Assessment Institute for Food, Drugs & Cosmetics Majelis Ulama Indonesia LPPOM MUI. Currently, halal beauty and personal care industries have offered an array of products, including perfumes, nail polishes, toners, lipstick, shampoos, lotions, soaps, powders and shower gels.
The increasing purchasing power of Western Muslim populations marks vast potential for the expansion for Halal Beauty. According to Ogilvy’s “Great British Ramadan Report 2021”, UK Muslims spent an estimated £200 million on goods in one month of Ramadan alone, and American Muslim Households hold approximately $200 billion in spending power. This is due to Islam being the fastest growing religion, with Muslims predicted to make up approximately one-third of the total population by 2060.
The rise of the Muslim millennial is what continues to catapult the success of Halal Beauty. The Nielsen Report states that 66% of consumers will pay more for ethical products. Younger consumers, who are two thirds of the Muslim population, were even more committed, with 73% of millennials willing to pay more. This, alongside the standards of cleanliness, lesser harm to animals, and ethical sourcing, have led to a global appeal for Halal certified cosmetics.
Meiyume has provided on-the-ground turnkey support for an array of Halal-certified product lines hopes to continue to contribute to the ever-growing potential of the global Halal certified cosmetics market.