The active ingredient was developed using a sustainable by-product (Lactobacillus Ferment) derived from the bacteria Lactiplantibacillus plantarum during fermentation.
The resulting supernatant – or fermentation broth – is suitable for skin care applications and contains health-promoting micronutrients, including amino acids, proteins, minerals, and organic acids.
Launched earlier this month under the Symrise brand, SymFerment, the ingredient is the culmination of “strong collaboration based on principles that deliver the key to our product development like sustainability and innovation”, according to Symrise Global Product Manager, Léa Schmidt.
Sustainable cosmetics
Schmidt maintains that the skin microbiome has become a major field of scientific endeavour as consumers increasingly demand sustainable cosmetic products, which is “why sustainability always forms the heart of our product development efforts.”
The novel upcycling process constitutes a high degree of efficacy, while also enabling Symrise to reduce its impact on the environment, she says.
“Thanks to the partnership with Probi, we can use valuable by-products from the production of probiotics to create effective ingredients.
“This allows us to expand our portfolio of sustainable cosmetics, which consumers are increasingly demanding, while we assume responsibility for our society and planet.”
Environmental synergies
Probi has been collaborating with Symrise since 2019 but this latest project represents a “completely new venture” that expedites the biotech’s own sustainability targets: to eventually convert all usable by-products from fermentation into useful products for customers.
Chief Operating Officer, Andy McShea asserts that developing new ingredients using valuable side-streams not only increases production profitability but reduces the environmental footprint.
“By using a by-product from our regular production, our waste is upcycled and processed into new products. Part of the amount of water we use in production can therefore be reused. This is not only good for our gross margins in production but for use of resources in terms of water consumption.”
Skin care benefits
SymFerment specifically targets body and face care. In vivo studies demonstrate the benefits of SymFerment in strengthening the skin barrier by supporting filaggrin product as well as having an immediate effect on skin moisture and texture.
Traditional skin hydration techniques were used to measure the moisture content of volunteers’ hands over time, with visible improvements observed. Similarly, tests using a skin camera to assess skin roughness and microrelief, revealed instant improvements in skin smoothness after application.
An additional ex vivo study confirmed the skin barrier strengthening efficacy provided by the ingredient.
Joint projects
Probi specialises in probiotics for dietary supplements and has access to an enormous database of bacterial strains and has the ability to produce large quantities of consistently high-quality probiotics.
Joint research with Symrise to date has focused on Lactobacillus strains and their potential application in innovative cosmetic products. Resulting products include SymReboot L19 paraprobiotic that restores skin defences, and SymReboot OC for oral care applications.
“Together, we can use our joint scientific power to bring effective cosmetic ingredients to market,” says Schmidt.