Homegrown raw materials eyed for anti-aging products

CEBU, Philippines - All-organic beauty and body care maker, Gandang Kalikasan Inc., (GKI) announced that it will venture into the growing “anti-aging” market, using all Filipino-grown raw materials from fruits, flowers and vegetables.

“We have a lot of resources here that can be used as primary raw material for anti-aging products. We don’t have to look far, we have the rich resources here,” said GKI president Anna Meloto-Wilk in an interview.

This year, GKI will introduce a few anti-aging products, after the company will close a deal with a third party to formulate its own organic anti-aging products, that will uphold the brand’s strict regulation on providing all-natural and organic products for the market.

Although, Wilk refused to divulge the main ingredient for its initial anti-aging cream, and beauty products that will be introduced soon, she said that this move will help more farmers generate more revenues.

In a report released by the Euromonitor International, it indicated that skin care market in the Philippines is seen to grow by US$915.4 million in the next four years.

Euromonitor, which is a research firm for consumer markets, further added that nourishers or anti-aging products recorded the most vibrant performance in 2010 fueled by an influx of affordable brands which attract the middle-income customer based.

The anti-aging market segment alone in the Philippines is projected to grow by US$105.8 million by 2015.

According to the report, unlike in the western countries where many aging women are extremely concerned about developing wrinkles, particularly “crow’s feet”—which appear around the corners of one’s eyes, Filipinas are more concerned about developing age spots, more than wrinkles.

Base on the survey, the Philippine consumer now a-days become more discerning in terms of skin care, thus manufacturers are challenged to continue to upgrade their product lines by introducing much more effective products which make use of the new advances in skin care technology.

Unlike before, the survey further indicated that Philippine consumers also became more conscious about the brand of skin care product they are using. 

“Consumers mostly rely on the availability of information online and pay more attention to product labeling and information detailing—the technology used in the development of particular product,” the report said.

Wilk said despite the entry of more affordable anti-aging products in the Philippines, Human Nature brand of GKI is seen to make a hit, while consumers are now more conscious of the formulation mixed of a product, with strong awareness on avoiding more chemical infusion into a product.

Besides, Wilk said one of the achievements of Human Nature, is its ability to make its credible organic products affordable to the mainstream market, unlike in the past that organic goods can only be accessed by the middle to higher end consumer based.

This time, that GKI has discovered a lot of Philippine-grown plants that are much effective for anti-aging products, both the market and the farmers will be able to benefit by this move.

“We are taking different stand. We cant just formulate a product because of its strong demand. We have to examine and study its feasibility, if its possible to develop avoiding a mixture of chemical formulations,” Wilk added.— (FREEMAN)