Westfalia Fruit will supply ground avocado seeds to premium beauty brand Dr. Craft to be used in a range of cosmetics in the UK. This comes after the global ban on the plastic microbeads previously used in the skincare industry.

The eco-friendly alternative took three years of research, development and product-testing. Both the international supplier and the cosmetics label worked closely with experts to produce the substitute.

Johnathan Sutton, Group Safety & Environmental Executive at Westfalia Fruit, said: “The project has involved several UK universities, including Leeds and Kingston, to verify and validate the use of avocado seeds. 

“The extraction process is very complex, but with perseverance a perfect particle size and process was discovered to work within a cosmetic body scrub.”

“The Dr. Craft brand is founded on scientific knowledge and expertise, using nature as our inspiration,” said Professor Richard Blackburn, Co-Founder & Director of Keracol and the brand Dr. Craft. 

“With a focus on green chemistry, our previous research looked at extracts from wine industry grape waste and citrus peels in a number of different products, but the more we studied avocados the more interesting and exciting it became.”

Reduced waste

Avocado waste components such as skins and stones are currently used in low value anaerobic digestors. Their inclusion in skincare poses a more sustainable alternative for disposing of these materials.

The new Dr. Craft body scrub is yet to announce a release date. However, the launch is expected for the third quarter, this year. Additional products are currently being developed. The eco-friendly line will be available online and in premium UK and European retailers.