What’s the origin, ethics and principles behind our products?
Nordics inspires change. In every way. Change in companies’ and consumers’ mentality, in the substances we take and give back to Nature, and change in the physical world around us. Our goal is to keep the Earth and humanity safe — without missing out on the best of quality ingredients. That’s why we wanted to tell you the story about Nordics’ ethical standards, and the origin and principle behind our products.
Our ethical standards
Nordics was born from the idea of creating sustainable and amazing products for daily oral care. Ever since, our ethical standards have been leading our business. Upholding strong principles, not only in our direct business, but throughout our entire value chain, is fundamental to how Nordics operates.
Every person at Nordics has the core mindset to take care of people’s health while also taking care of our Planet. This makes our products more efficient and strengthens our reputation as a sustainable oral care brand.
We believe that the way a company does business is as important as the quality of its products. Our ethical standards Respect, Courage, Transparency, and Fairness serve as our compass for our daily acts.
Respect
Our business influences many people’s lives and our Planet. We show respect for every drop of water invested in the production of our stock, every ounce of raw material, and every millimeter of packaging. The respect in our business starts from the privilege of using Mother Nature’s gifts and goes to each moment of dedication of our employees and partners.
Courage
Nordics’ bravery to be different made us a rising star among dental care. We rose above the ocean of conventional toothpastes and stood up for our environment. Courage means risk-taking for a cause. We took the risk of largely investing in R&D, selling at a price point above average, because of the natural substances we use, and also looking different. Nordics broke the status quo of unorthodox ways in a conservative and stiff market as oral.
Transparency
Because above all, being honest and trustworthy is the key to build a sustainable brand. Nordics is COSMOS Organic certified, and also vegan and cruelty-free. We go through these processes to give our consumers better transparency on our products to build a stronger connection.
Fairness
We believe in treating everyone equally and tolerate and accept diversity. You can see this all around our social media and marketing communication. We also guarantee fairness in every part of our supply chain, meaning that everyone gets the fair value he deserves - our vendors, partners, and clients.
The origin of Nordics products
All ingredients used in our products go through a strict process of quality supervision. We only use certified ingredients from boutique suppliers to maintain high standards and quality in our products. This of course leads to a higher cost for the ingredients we use but also helps to reduce our carbon footprint.
We don’t make compromises in quality and sustainability — and we mean it. If we can’t find a substance that stands to our standards, that means we simply don’t produce the product in mind. The extracts we use in our products are certified biological and raw materials. Furthermore, they are also vegan and cruelty-free.
Quality standard — COSMOS Organic
The COSMOS Standard is managed by the non-profit, international and independent association - the Brussels-based COSMOS Standard AISBL. COSMOS offers two signatures for cosmetic products, such as beauty and skin care products, or in our case oral hygiene products. COSMOS ORGANIC or COSMOS NATURAL always appears directly under the logo of the relevant certifier or association, so that the consumer recognizes that it is a well-known and trusted association or certifier. Furthermore, the label indicates the percentage of organic ingredients in the product. This is the percentage organic of the total product, but since some products contain a lot of water and mineral ingredients that cannot be organic, the percentage organic minus these two ingredient categories is also indicated.
Nordics bio toothpastes are COSMOS Organic certified, and as such are committed to only use high-quality raw materials for our products. That means that at least 95% of the physically processed agro-ingredients have to be organic.
It has always been our mission to use Nordics to improve people's lives. That includes taking good care of the place we all call home. We don't have the answer to every question, but we are committed to making choices that benefit our customers, employees, and the environment — from the materials we use, to the manufacturer we work with, to the steps we take to bring our products to you.
What are the forbidden substances in Nordics toothpastes and why we want to be FREE of them?
We know that if you’re reading this article you're not the mainstream shopper looking for a bargain in the drugstore. Well, it’s hard to step out of the shopping stereotypic behavior. The markets around the world are flooded with goods striving to deliver low prices and better margins that often come along with compromised quality.
We, at Nordics, aim to create better opportunities for everybody to reach and buy high quality, clean label oral care products. That’s why we just said “No” to some of the most used cosmetic ingredients and took the long, but far more satisfying road of clean labels.
But what exactly is a "clean label"? This means that you won’t find “parabens, SLS, PEGs, synthetic flavors & colorants, preservatives, sugar or soy”, written anywhere on our packaging. The reason we don’t fancy those substances is simple: they have controversial effects on the human body. Even though they do wonderfully for producing a cheap, foamy, strong-flavored toothpaste with a long expiry period, we couldn’t be tempted into going that direction. Our values are superior, and we believe that well-being, safety and sustainability are better than simple good looks?
Parabens. These types of preservatives have been used for decades around the world. However, some 15 years ago, it was up against convictions that they might cause breast cancer. This was followed by a controversial discussion and at the end, parabens were marked as “generally safe". Then, and in fact, now, parabens are widely spread around the cosmetic industry, as “The World Counts” estimates. That's the key moment. Nowadays parabens are all over your cosmetic box and bathroom shelves and they begin to accumulate. Research shows that parabens have a direct relation to skin irritation, allergies, and dermatitis in children. Furthermore, there is data that preservatives hide health risks, and as scientists (Schnuch et al.) noted in 2011, “Preservatives are still important contact allergens. The introduction of new preservatives should consider the specific characteristics of occupational and of nonoccupational (cosmetic, household) exposure, and preventive measures should aim equally at both areas”.
That is why we conserve our products with natural preservatives that are harmless to our body and nature and ensure long shelf life.
SLS or Sodium Lauryl Sulfate. This additive is used as a surfactant to create big and fluffy foam in cosmetic products. As we all know, foam washes away impurities, and also SLS is believed to have a mild antibacterial effect.
So far so good.
Looking at the other side, in vitro tests show that SLS slows gum healing. SLS is also an irritant that could be unpleasant for more sensitive people. In spite of this, our research shows that a fair share of users just cannot think of toothpaste without thick rich foam. That’s why Nordics portfolio offers both toothpastes containing SLS and ones using a bio-based foaming agent (Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate)
Propylene Glycol is a synthetic substance that is used in various industries, including cosmetics. Speaking about oral care, its function is to smoothen and soften the base of the toothpaste. Even though propylene glycol makes the toothpaste strip on your brush look shiny, its relation to allergies and contact dermatitis is well-documented. Also, the propylene glycol (PG) that is used in oral care products is toxic, as are other ingredients on our “forbidden” list. Even though its toxicity is low and propylene glycol is “Generally recognized as safe” by the United States Food and Drug Administration, it’s not something we want on our labels or in our customer’s mouths.
Synthetic flavors and colors are designed to recreate natural tastes and smells since extracting essential oils is expensive, time-consuming, and laborious. You would guess that the lower price plays the main role in manufacturers' decision-making. That’s far from surprising since using a purely natural scent is exclusive and even boutique practice. To continue the moral discussion, there is scientific evidence that synthetic food colorants are connected to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Furthermore, the toxic effect of synthetic food colorants is visible in the deviations of a number of health indicators, such as blood cell quantity, hemoglobin levels, bilirubin and total protein.
Well, Nordics standards cannot allow such a thing at any cost. Our appealing tastes and crispy freshness come from 100% natural flavors.
Sugar. The words “sugar” and “oral health” lay at the two opposite ends of one semantic line, but "sweet" and “oral health” go together just fine. We’ve used the perfect sweetener that not only pleases the palates but also protects the enamel from decay. Our favorite natural ingredient that has the sweetness of sugar – xylitol. It’s truly a gift from mother nature’s raspberries, oranges, corncobs, and mostly in birch tree barks.
Oral care is a huge market and you can swim in a variety of different mint tastes or color stripes. Nordics is devoted to making a well-being impact that goes beyond human-being. The essence of rejecting popular cosmetics substances and carefully selecting the ones we cherish, is a challenging and nerve-wracking process, indeed. The result, in the end, is what’s paying off and that is a healthier smile for a healthier Planet.
Thinking about New Year's Resolutions? How about doing more for the Planet?
This article is not meant to review or analyze everything that 2020 brought to the table, because maybe a whole book won’t be enough for that. All we’re going to say is that we’re most grateful for the direct and immediate lessons that our Planet has shown to humanity.
We were taught how we faint before the power of Nature, and how mighty Her healing powers are! Just in weeks, right before our eyes, we saw waters clear up, city air becoming breathable again, wild animals calmly returning to their natural habitats, and even an Ozone hole shrinking! We cannot express our awe and love towards those outcomes, and we are more inspired to continue working for Global sustainability and waste reduction. You could call that our New Years’ Resolution. We’d love to share some easy-to-follow nature-caring tips with you.
1. Take a well-informed decision when choosing a brand
Everytime you choose to buy a certain brand you’re actually sponsoring it. This sends the brand the message that it’s doing a great job and you’d like it to produce more. Last but not least, you’re also enabling that company to grow, giving it your money. Take the role of a sponsor and buy only from the companies that you truly support. Choosing a local brand stimulates a small business that’s probably producing outstanding value and boutique quality. Also, buying local dramatically shortens the money and resources spent on transportation, infrastructure, and administrative staff. All of this is calculated on your account in the end.
2. Reuse, Reduce, Recycle
Actually, this is a “back to basics” advice. Our ancestors didn’t nearly produce any waste because they were making full use of the products they could get. All of that was because of scarce resources. Now, we’re choking in the overwhelming variety of cheap goods. You’d be surprised with the uses of old packaging. You could make screws, nuts, and nails boxes from used cosmetic containers. The same application goes to jewelry or make-up storage. Find many DIY ideas for home and garden here.
Reducing your consumption of FMCG can often be healthy and money-saving. The tricky part is that this is entirely up to your awareness and will. Just think of how much food, cosmetics, and all kinds of items you currently have in your fridge, cosmetic shelf, or bathroom. You obviously didn’t need those. We propose the following 3 easy steps to consciously reduce your unnecessary consumption.
Analyze - carefully review the products in your fridge and home that have been lying around unused for some time. Obviously, this was a poor buying decision and you should memorize those items and the exact thoughts and feelings that made you buy them in the first place.
Plan - Plan the food and goods that you’ll actually use during the next few days. Don’t store. Supermarkets aren’t going anywhere. Even if you incidentally need something, it’s easy to quickly jump to the local store. That’s how you’ll always eat fresh food, save money and gasoline..
Control - The manufactured goods offer us lure and temptation. That’s probably how you’ve ended up with those unused items in the beginning. This is where discipline has to kick in. Don’t be impulsive but be wise. That’s what we’re teaching the little ones, so we should be leading the example.
3. Get yourself a beautiful reusable cup, bottle, and food box
The options are plenty. You can choose from a variety of materials - rubber, metal, glass, or even plastic. Once, there was actually no bottled water in the stores. We all brought one from home or drank from public fountains. We promise you’ll fall in love with the cute reusable cups. Be cool and hand your personal one to the bartender.
When you have a food box it gives you the liberty of buying in bulk from the supermarket. Remember the trillions of small plastic bags that are impossible to recycle? You really don’t need them if you bring jars or other storing utensils when shopping. See how Samanta does it!
4. Turn off the water while brushing, shaving, and shampooing your hair
These bad habits cost our Planet precious water that we pay to our provider at the end of each month. Remember that in the majority of places tab water is drinking water. Would you just pour our bottled water into the gutter? Well, it’s basically the same but without the plastic. A curious fact is that even though the Earth is the blue planet, only 0,5% of its water is available freshwater. What a perspective, huh?
We’re heading into the new year with those 5 eco-friendly tips and we’ll be delighted if you could share yours on our Facebook page. Stay safe.
