If you’re looking for organic and natural beauty products you want to be sure they really are as eco-friendly as they sound.

Soil Association policy advisor Francis Blake says it’s important to check your products have been certified independently, according to the Mypure website.

"The way that independent assurance goes these days - and what consumers really want - is some independent verification that the product is what it says it is," he told the website.

Checking for Soil Association labels is one way to be sure the product is organic – but there are also many other standards and marks which you can watch out for.

Here at Big Green Smile, we have products certified by organisations such as Ecocert, the Vegan Society, and Fairtrade – and you can even search for products according to the standard you wish for.

The Soil Association has recently got together with four other certification bodies from across Europe to develop an international organisation AISBL which has an internationally recognised standard for organic and natural cosmetics, according to Mypure.

[Image: Soil Association]