Organic or Non-Organic: What Should You Choose?

You may be considering buying a Certified USDA Organic Certified Lip Balm, but maybe you have a few lingering questions. Although both our Certified USDA Organic Certified Lip Balm and our Premium Non-SPF balms are organic, cruelty-free, eco-friendly and feature clean ingredient decks (no chemicals, parabens, petroleum preservatives, artificial colorants or fragrances, etc.), the two differ slightly.

Here is what you need to consider ordering Certified USDA Organic Certified and Premium Lip Balms:

1. Price: USDA Organic Certified Lip Balms are .50 - $1 more expensive than Premium Non-SPF.
2. End User - Are they expecting or invested in the logo being on your balm or would they feel indifferent? While both products use organic ingredients, the USDA Organic Certified lip is the only balm that can feature the label.
3. Longer lead time/approval process: Getting the label on your balm requires us to go directly to the USDA for approval using the certified badge. It may extend lead time as it must be approved before use.

What is USDA Organic and what does it mean?

If you see the "USDA Organic" or "Certified Organic" seal on your product, the item must have an ingredients list and the contents should be 95% or more certified organic, meaning free of synthetic additives like pesticides, chemical fertilizers, and dyes, and must not be processed using industrial solvents, irradiation, or genetic engineering.

You may also see "100% organic," which means all of the ingredients must meet the guidelines above, or "made with organic," which means that the ingredients must contain 70% or more organic ingredients, the USDA seal cannot be used anywhere on the package, and the remaining 30% of the ingredients may not be foods or processed with additives on a special exclusion list.

Sometimes there is even "Made with Organic" which means 70% of the product must be certified organic. Must not include USDA organic seal anywhere,
represent finished product as organic, or state “made with organic ingredients.” All ingredients must be labeled organic via astrix.

Other interesting facts:

• FDA does not define or regulate the term “organic,” as it applies to cosmetics, body care, or personal care products.
• The USDA requirements for the use of the term “organic” are separate from the laws and regulations that FDA enforces for cosmetics. Cosmetic products labeled with organic claims must comply with both USDA regulations for the organic claim and FDA regulations for labeling and safety requirements for cosmetics.
• As part of the prohibition against false or misleading information, no cosmetic may be labeled or advertised with statements suggesting that FDA has approved the product.
• FDA has not defined the term “natural” and has not established a regulatory definition for this term in cosmetic labeling.