Since the official implementation of the Cosmetic Supervision and Administration Regulation (CSAR) in 2021, China National Medical Product Administration (NMPA) has implemented classified management on cosmetic products and new cosmetic ingredients (NCIs) according to their risk degree. High-risk NCIs are required to be registered with NMPA. While for low-risk NCIs, as long as enterprises complete the submission of dossiers online, the NCI is considered as “notified” and then can be manufactured and imported, which reduces the threshold for NCI to enter the Chinese market.
Following explosive growth in 2022, the number of NCI notifications continues to grow in 2023. According to information from NMPA’s data query platform, 35 NCIs were notified from Q1 to Q3 2023. This trend suggests that ingredient innovation has become a core focus for beauty enterprises to maintain a competitive edge.
NCIs sources: chemical sources remain dominant; plant extracts are on the rise
From Q1 to Q3 2023, most of the notified NCIs were derived from chemical sources, while a few were from plants, biotechnology, animals and hydrolysis technology (Figure 1).
Due to the low safety risk associated with the ingredient structure of chemical ingredients (polymers), only skin and eye irritation/corrosion tests and skin phototoxicity tests are required. These alternative test methods are already incorporated into the Safety and Technical Standards for Cosmetics (STSC). As many foreign countries/regions, including the EU, the US, and Japan, currently prohibit animal testing in cosmetics, notifiers from these countries/regions prefer to notify chemical ingredients (polymers).
