This article originally appeared on Beauty Packaging.
Cannabis is the latest ingredient disrupting every consumer industry and beauty and personal care is no exception. As regulation on the substance lightens, beauty products infused with CBD (cannabidiol) are on the rise.
Hemp beauty and personal care products have been present on the market for decades, a notable example being the Body Shop’s hemp range of skin care. However, the new generation of hemp-derived products launched over the last two years carry no reference to hemp, instead being replaced by CBD. This new superhero ingredient in beauty offers anti-oxidising, oil-balancing, anti-inflammatory, and soothing properties.
While only a handful of beauty products contain THC (in countries where this is legal), in the long term, hemp-derived beauty products are expected to give way to CBD, as both consumer knowledge and product availability increase. In addition, consumer trends such as health and wellness, personalisation, sustainability, ethical living, and indulgence are all expected to play a part in priming consumers for cannabis.
CBD-infused beauty launches are largely prevalent in skin care. Euromonitor International expects skin care brands operating in the therapeutic and dermocosmetics space to drive cannabis beauty growth, as it responds well to current holistic and health-aligned beauty trends of repair, protection and therapy.
Most of the beauty players in the cannabis space have been small companies, such as Milk Makeup and MGC Derma. Larger established beauty brands are increasingly jumping on the CBD bandwagon, such as Unilever with its Murad serum, Estée Lauder with its Origins face mask, or L’Oréal with its Kiehl’s facial oil, all including hemp seed oil as part of their ingredients. Within the next five years, it is expected that most major beauty players will explore cannabis beauty as part of their portfolio.