Young people's action group Healthy Child Healthy World has stressed that efforts to legislate in the US to make natural beauty products easier to distinguish are not intended to damage small businesses.

Under the proposed Safe Cosmetics Act of 2010, full disclosure of ingredients is required, while the need for ingredients to be demonstrably safe - already a necessity under US law - will be enforced.

However, the move is not intended to drive small natural beauty brands out of business - and the legislation includes specific exemptions to ensure that this does not happen.

On its page about the impact of the Act on small businesses, the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics explains that ingredient producers will be required to produce "right-to-know" documentation outlining any potential toxic effects of their chemicals.

Small firms will also be exempt from some of the fees associated with the legislation, allowing it to safeguard consumers without imperilling the companies that produce their favourite brands.