Organic alcohol, yes please: Quality over quantity in organic food, beverages and cosmetics

A report by Technavio predicts the organic food and beverages market will grow at a rate of 14% from 2017 until 2021. This prediction is already becoming true in countries such as the US. There, sales of organic products reached $47 billion in 2016, up 8 percent from 2015; more organic products are being sold than ever before. Continuously trying to cater to this demand and innovating the competitive market has led to many new organic product launches. However, organic products must be certified.

Organic certification? EU organic, USDA NOP, and COSMOS certification

For alcohol to have an organic certificate, it must adhere to strict standards set by the government and the food industry. These standards include all stages of the production process, meaning production, processing and packaging. The EU organic certificate for instance bans chemical pesticides and synthetic fertilizers along with GMOs. Furthermore, it demands crop rotation for efficient use of resources and states that antibiotics are severely restricted. These regulations ultimately aim to guarantee food quality, environmental protection and animal welfare along the whole supply chain. Similarly, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has a National Organic Program (NOP) to certify organic goods. This program also focuses on standards, procedures, equipment and more. Lastly, the cosmetics industry has an organic certification known as COSMOS (COSMetic Organic Standard), which is a Europe-wide private standard, promoting the use of ingredients from organic farming, environmentally sound production processes that are safe for human health, and expanding the concept of “green chemicals”.

Clearly, organic requires dedication to detail, whether in the beauty, or food and beverage industry. For corn to be organically certified for instance, the soil must remain untouched for five years. In the end the yield is smaller, but the quality is better. Ultimately, dedication is appreciated: organic food-grade prices for wheat, corn and soybeans typically are two to three (or more) times higher than conventionally-grown crops. Organic wheat has also experienced a rise in popularity thanks to its many uses from bread to alcohol, making it a challenging crop to source. Despite a tight market and shortage of organic alcohol, the craving for organic products continues to grow, even though demand often exceeds the supply. The interest in organic alcohol spans across multiple industries:

Organic alcohol: What are organic products and what can it be used for?

Organic alcohol in food production

Organic neutral alcohols offer as much flexibility as their non-organic counterparts in the production of food products. For instance, using organic neutral wheat alcohol or organic sugarcane alcohol in the production of organic white vinegar (also known as distilled or spirit vinegar). 

Organic alcohol in food production includes:

• Organic white vinegar
• Organic spirit vinegar 
• Distilled vinegar

Organic alcohol for spirit production

A lot of spirits are launching an organic version aside their usual offering, often because consumers demanded it. Well-known organic options include organic gin and organic vodka. Organic neutral wine or grape alcohol is another example, commonly used for organic brandy production. 

Organic alcohols used in spirit production include:

• Organic wine alcohol
• Organic brandy
• Organic whisky/ organic Whiskey

Organic denatured alcohol for cosmetics and beauty

For a cosmetics product to maintain its organic certification, all ingredients must be organic, including the alcohol used. To avoid excise duties, alcohol is usually denatured, making it unfit for human consumption. How can denatured alcohol stay organic? This is made possible thanks to organic denaturants, such as mint. Sasma is able to supply organic alcohol which is COSMOS organic- certified. If products, such as organic perfumes for example, are made with organic ingredients then any processing must also be done in accordance with organic guidelines to avoid losing the certificate. If COSMOS organic certified alcohol is used in production, the end product is then still organically certified. Possible uses of organic alcohol in cosmetics production include:

• Organic perfumes
• Organic fragrances
• Organic solvents
• Organic Detergents

More information about organic alcohol

Is your business as conscious about organic as your consumers yet? Our organic products have the EU organic, USDA NOP and COSMOS certifications. If your business is not ready for an organic certification, Sasma can also supply ready to bottle organic rum and organic whisky/whiskey.