It may not have reached Asia yet, but you’d have had to have been living under a rock to have missed the hype surrounding cannabidiol (CBD) and its influence on skincare. Hemp-derived CBD has boosted skincare product development in the United States far beyond other markets, laying the groundwork for the exciting opportunities that lie ahead in the natural, plant-based beauty and cosmetics sector. CBD is a non-psychoactive chemical found in cannabis and hemp. CBD oils extracted from industrial hemp have only trace amounts of the THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, that results in the euphoria felt after smoking a joint. “The CBD skincare segment is really fascinating,” says Bethany Edmunds, managing director at Brightfield Group, a predictive analytics and market research firm for the legal CBD and cannabis industries in the US. “We expect it to hit more than US$414 million in 2019 and that has been happening so quickly both because of demand from consumers and generalised awareness around CBD.” Edmunds admits the US has got a massive head start in the North American CBD skincare market due to the Farm Bill of 2018, which removed hemp from the Controlled Substances Act and paved the way for legal cultivation, possession, sale and distribution of the hemp plant. According to a recent report on hemp-derived CBD from Brightfield Group, CBD is estimated to make up to US$5 billion in 2019, a roughly 706 per cent increase from 2018. In the likely case that the US Food and Drug Administration creates a regulatory framework for CBD supplements and the mainstream market continues to embrace hemp-derived CBD across the country, the market is expected to grow exponentially, reaching US$23.7 billion by 2023. According to Edmunds, the last four months have been a whirlwind of CBD product research and development, only just scratching the surface of what’s to come, but products like sleeping masks, serums, after-sun care, soaps and bath bombs look the most promising. Dr Andrew Kerklaan worked as a chiropractor for nearly 20 years until the rumours of the recreational cannabis market started to swirl and clients were coming forward to ask him about the benefits of CBD products, of which he had little knowledge at the time. After significant personal research and exploration, he formed his company, Dr. Kerklaan Therapeutics in 2016, began product and brand development, and formally launched in the summer of 2018. Dr. Kerklaan Therapeutics is now one of the top CBD skincare brands in the US and has been praised by beauty moguls like Oprah Winfrey, and publications like Vogue , Forbes and Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop . The Natural CBD relief cream has become the company’s most popular product due to is ability to ease discomfort, tension and stiffness. A close second is the Natural CBD skin cream, which can be used for irritations, burns, dermatitis and more, or simply as an addition to standard hydrating skincare practices. “Natural and plant-based is certainly a big trend so to have this huge potential from CBD in the skincare sector, whether its potential as an anti-inflammatory or as an antioxidant or for hydrating and immune response, those are all things that are being studied,” says Kerklaan. Kerklaan and his team predict 2020 will be a massive year for new product offerings with the company poised to launch new beauty products like serums, eye cream and lip balm in the next few months. Among the other top CBD skincare product companies in the US are Lord Jones, Sagely Naturals, Saint Jane, Vertly, Cannuka, Mineral, Khus + Khus, Prima; Beboe Therapies and Hora. Denver-based wellness brand Mary’s Nutritionals became widely recognised for developing its award-winning transdermal patch, which delivers CBD into the bloodstream from a thin fabric applied to the skin. The company also makes the list of top CBD skincare companies in the US and has achieved great success with its body serums, scrubs and eye cream. “It is such an amazing time in the beauty industry,” says Phillip Zamudio, global vice-president of sales at Mary’s Nutritionals and Mary’s Methods. “To have such a powerful ingredient in full-spectrum hemp, and combining it with other powerhouse ingredients like those for anti-ageing, means the sky is the limit on innovation throughout the entire skincare and beauty sectors.” While Zamudio is optimistic about the future of the industry, he also suggests customers should be wary of product ingredients and methods of production, as you would with any other ingestible or topical product. “Not all CBD skincare products are created equal,” says Zamudio. “Consumers should do their research to ensure CBD skincare products contain natural, locally sourced CBD … The raw CBD should be free of pesticides, heavy metals and residual solvents as well.” Hemp-derived CBD and cannabis-derived CBD are extracted in similar ways but are often used for different things. “Hemp-derived CBD is sourced from industrial hemp strains which are commonly used for their seeds and fibre and harvested for industrial use,” says Danny Brody, chief corporate officer at HempFusion, a premium CBD product company in Colorado, the US. “They also tend to look different than traditional cannabis plants, with less foliage and a slightly skinnier appearance.” Brody moved from Toronto, Canada, to the US at a time when hemp production and subsequent product development was beginning to far outpace those of Canadian companies. He admits his frustration with the slow roll-out of cannabis- and hemp-infused products in Canada was a factor in relocating. “We are seeing significant interest in our topical products from traditional bricks-and-mortar retailers as well as big-box stores. These types of retail partners prefer to start with topicals,” says Brody. “Additionally, retailers are asking for CBD combined with other ingredients like ashwagandha , pharmagaba and omegas, which we have used to create our bestselling sleep and stress CBD products.” HempFusion largely focuses on developing consumer products that treat stress, sleep and energy issues. The company’s Hemp Extract Cream and Balm is gaining popularity but the requests for more keep coming in. “With more and more people learning about and trying CBD products, we absolutely believe the sector will continue to grow at a rapid pace and provide consumers with alternatives to opioids and other synthetic medicines,” says Brody. As Canada pushes its second phase of legalisation, Brody hopes HempFusion will be able to expand north once CBD regulations relax. But for now, the future of CBD beauty and cosmetics will yield some exciting, never before-seen products in 2020 that will propel the natural, plant-based trend into new realms.