The hair care market is transforming itself! To meet consumer demand for more natural ingredients, brands are modifying their formulas and, according to Mintel, naturalness claims in these products have been growing strongly over the last five years [1].

To help brands better address consumers demands, Seppic has teste the effectiveness of Solagum Tara [2] in hair care formulations. Launched in 2012, Solagum Tara is a polysaccharide derived from Tara seeds, an emblematic shrub native to the Andean valleys of Peru. According to Seppic, this natural gum can be used to thicken and stabilize emulsions and cream-gels and also acts as a texturizing agent by providing them with a structuring effect and soft feel.

According to Seppic, thanks to its high thickening power, Solagum Tara has demonstrated equivalent performance to Hydroxyethylcellulose (HEC), a common ingredient in hair care formulations, while offering a better natural and sensorial profile. Indeed, Solagum Tara is 100% natural origin, according to the ISO 16128 standard, and easily biodegradable, according to the OECD 301F standard.

Figure 1 - Formulated as a rinsed hair mask, Solagum Tara offers a smoother, more beautiful, less lumpy texture.

In a more minimalist formulation approach, Solagum Tara is also an ally of choice for hair formulas because, in addition to thickening, it plays a role in controlling volume and frizz in curly hair care,” adds Seppic in a statement.

Figure 2 -Evaluation of hair smoothing maintenance and volume control of Solagum Tara on curly Brazilian hair, type IV, in an aqueous leave-in gel. Photo T6h after treatment.