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With an increasing number of people caring what they put on their skin, the future of organic and natural cosmetics has never been so bright, according to the Soil Association's Organic Beauty and Wellbeing Market Report.

The report reveals that sales of certified organic and natural beauty products increased by 13% in 2016 to £61.2 million. Soil Association certified beauty brands are also on the up, increasing 22% to 268 licensees since 2016.

This is the Soil Association's first ever report on the organic beauty and wellbeing market, reflecting the significance of and continued growth in organic and natural beauty. This year, the market has been driven by an increasing interest in health and wellbeing, with 43% of people surveyed saying they look for a certification logo when shopping for organic cosmetics.

Key trends for 2017

The report gives the lowdown on key trends for 2017. Taking centre stage is the influence of social media from healthy lifestyle cultures in Denmark and Australia, countries which are considered years ahead of the UK in their approach to promoting wellbeing.

The crossover between food and beauty and the concept of ‘inside-out beauty' will continue to rise in 2017 with the ‘mindful' approach to wellbeing focused on the way our diet, emotional state and environment is a direct reflection of our skin health. This reflects recent research which has found that 42% of people choose natural and organic products because they believed they are better for the environment.

Hot trends for 2017 include beauty products containing extracts from unusual food ingredients like cactus and maple. This trend is driven by ethical consumer demand for simplicity, as more people are favouring ingredients from food or plant sources which are easier to identify.

Other new trends include a move towards sustainability and greener ingredients, and increased brand transparency following on from a high level of scrutiny of beauty products' ethical and sustainable sourcing credentials. Natural and organic product range extensions towards men, children and mums-to-be are also on the up and up, as is the international demand for organic and natural cosmetics, which has led to more brands from around the world becoming certified.

Lauren Bartley, Health & Beauty Business Development Manager at Soil Association Certification, says: “With demand for organic and natural products on the rise, it's an exciting time for the industry. 2017 is set to be another year of consecutive growth for the Beauty and Wellbeing sector. There is a small but growing range of certified products on offer in health food retailers and with very few mainstream retail outlets stocking organic, this presents a huge opportunity for 2017 and beyond.”

Key findings from the Organic Beauty and Wellbeing Market Report and the Organic Market Report 2017 include:

• Sales of certified organic health and beauty products in the UK are worth £61.2 million
• The certified organic health and beauty market has grown by 13%
• Soil Association Certified organic and natural businesses increased 22%
• 43% of consumers look for a certification symbol when they buy a natural or organic personal care product
• Sales of all organic products (including food & drink and beauty & wellbeing) in the UK are worth £2.09 billion
• The total UK organic market increased by 7.1% in 2016