Kokova Magazine

Natracare organic cotton wipes have received organic status from the Soil Association, making it easier for shoppers to distinguish the product's benefits from the synthetic equivalents.

The Intimate Wipes are the first in the range to receive the superior status, which certifies the product to the highly-reputed organic health and beauty care standards. Notably, no changes had to be made to the winning formula in order to receive the new organic status, so why undergo certification 8 years on from the product launch?

Brand founder and owner, Susie Hewson explains:

"There are an increasing number of brands falsely claiming to be natural whilst still using harmful and toxic ingredients, especially within the wet wipes market. This greenwashing appals and angers us as a company, so we were really keen to combat this in a positive manner.

Certifying our wipes with the Soil Association provides consumers with confidence that our products have undergone rigorous analysis to conform to top industry standards."

The need for better quality wet wipes has never been greater as many commonly known brands contain harsh foaming agents like sodium lauryl sulphate (SLS), as well as synthetic preservatives such as phenoxyethanol and parabens. Many of these chemicals have been linked to irritation and classified as 'of concern' by dermatologists who fear they may be the cause of a rise in allergies.

Natracare wipes have only ever been made from organic cotton and only the very best plant-based and organic ingredients. The gentle formula is free from alcohol, detergents (such as sodium lauryl sulphate), parabens, SHG and other types of toxic, formaldehyde releasing preservatives. The new certification simply authenticates Natracare as the organic and natural choice.

The brand also offers Baby Wipes for babies sensitive skin and most recently launched a Make-Up Removal Wipe certified to the new COSMOS organic standard by the Soil Association.

We sampled the Natracare Intimate Wipes and, although we were not keen on the chosen scent (personal preference), the wipes are exceptionally strong and do not tear, removing the associated problems with thinner wipes that do tear. The moisture level in the wipe is perfect, not overly wet yet not drying out as soon as you remove it from the packet. Even after five minutes the wipe is still cool to touch and moist, plenty of time to allow for intimate cleaning. The wipes are also a good size - again absolutely spot on, not too big or small.

For a thorough test we actually tried to stretch a wipe and poke our fingers through it to see if we could get it to rip, and were unsuccessful.

The Natracare Cleansing Make-Up Removal Wipes come out with a lot more moisture to them but are thinner than the Intimate Wipes but we preferred their scent, even though it was similar to the Intimate Wipes. Considering we would be using it on our face and near our noses we were pleased to find they had a more floral edge to their smell. With regards to make-up removal, the performance is what we would expect from a wipe designed for this job, and resulted in no irritation to our skin.

The full range of Natracare tampons, sanitary pads, panty liners and new mother products can be found on www.natracare.com

Both products are recyclable and biodegradable, so we asked our local council for advice on what bins they should go into for refuse collection... with an interesting result! Read our article on Are We Wasting Our Time (and Money) Buying Biodegradable Products? for more on this story.