Cosmetic grade ethanol

Nedstar is a leading supplier of cosmetics grade ethanol to the cosmetics industry. We can also tailor an ethanol cosmetics product to meet your specific needs, using any combination of a range of denaturants including DEP, MEX, Bitrex, TSDA 1-9, TBA, IPA, Euro Denatured and Tipo A-D.

What is ethanol for cosmetics?

The ethanol, or ethyl alcohol, used in cosmetics is denatured alcohol obtained by fermenting sugar starch from a wide variety of raw materials including sugar beet, sugar cane, wheat, grain, rye and corn, or by synthesis. The process of denaturing makes the ethanol unusable in alcoholic drink products, and thus exempt from certain taxes and levies. Ethanol is generally listed in the ingredients of an ethanol cosmetics product as Alcohol, Denat Alcohol or Denat Ethanol. Ethanol for cosmetics (C2H5OH) is an odourless, tasteless, high-purity alcohol.

What is cosmetics ethanol used for?

Ethanol is used in a wide range of cosmetics and related products. It is the main ingredient in perfumes and eau de toilettes, sometimes with and sometimes without a denaturant. Ethanol can also be used in deodorants and hygiene products, makeup and lotions, shaving and skincare products, haircare and oral care products, and more.

Ethanol is very widely used in the cosmetics industry because it has such a wide range of highly beneficial properties. For example, it is used in hygiene products like deodorants due to its antiviral, antimicrobial, antibacterial and antifungal qualities. While its ability to facilitate the depositing of a product’s active ingredients on the user’s hair or skin obviously makes it ideal for hair products like shampoo and hairspray, but also for the depositing of pigments when applying make-up.

When and why use ethanol in cosmetics and beauty products?

Ethanol enables your superficial skin to absorb a product’s active ingredients quicker, which is great for perfumes and colognes. But it also evaporates fast (also known as having ‘high volatility’), which means the ethanol is in contact with your skin relatively briefly. This minimises the chance of skin irritation, making ethanol ideal for use in everything from make-up and moisturiser to hair colour and sunscreen.

In addition, ethanol is a highly efficient hydrolysing agent, helping dissolve other ingredients in a product; but also a natural preservative, a refreshing agent, a sun filter and a solubilizer of active ingredients.

And finally, ethanol is a natural product that can be used by manufacturers in organic products, which are increasingly in demand with today’s consumer. This is one reason why leading cosmetics brands and manufacturers tend to avoid the use of synthetic alcohol.

Denaturants for cosmetic grade ethanol

To create a denatured ethyl alcohol for cosmetics that fits your needs, we can customize it with your preferred combination of denaturants. The denaturing means lower taxes often apply to alcohol. Choose (a combination of) the following denaturants to create a product that meets your demands:

DEP
MEK
Bitrex
TSDA 1-9
TBA
IPA
Euro Denatured
Tipo A-D

More about denaturants

Certifications

All our cosmetics grade alcohol is ISO 22000 certified and compliant with REACH. Additionally, we can certify your product as Kosher, Cosmos-approved, Ecocert, USP Grade or GMO-free. More information can be found on our certifications page.

More about certifications

We offer sturdily-built and durable 1000L Intermediate Bulk Containers (IBCs), which are large containers used for the storage and transportation of fluids and materials in bulk quantity.