BIODIVERSITY: the sea is infinitely rich. A gold mine of natural resources

The sea is full of countless riches with thousands of virtues for the skin. The application of marine cosmetics affects all areas of beauty: Hydration, anti-aging, pigmentation spots, cellulite, nutrition, etc.

A marine active ingredient is any ingredient derived from the sea, used in cosmetics: algae, micro-algae, marine micro-organisms as well as plants, flowers and trees that grow by the sea.

While most of the earth’s species have already been identified, only a small percentage of marine organisms have been discovered. The ocean is an extremely vast and largely untapped biological reservoir. This pool of natural active ingredients is all the more fascinating because the biodiversity found here is much greater that of plants; especially since many marine active ingredients have no terrestrial equivalent.

Marine biodiversity in a few figures: -    80% of living organisms are found under water. -    About 40,000 species of algae have already been identified, but it is estimated that there are almost ten times more. -    90% of marine organisms are microscopic and currently only 1% of them have been identified. That’s 300,000 underwater species known to science compared to 1 and a half million on Earth! -    99% of the marine species still remain to be identified.

About 700 new molecules from the sea are identified each year by research laboratories around the world.

The extraordinary diversity of algae:

Algae are attracting growing interest. Species diversity and the availability of biomass make them a considerable resource. Algae are indeed the most common living being in the earth’s waters. Algae have an incredible diversity. The differences between brown algae and green algae are greater than those between green algae and a tree. Algae are made up of 75% of organic matter including mineral salts and trace elements. Anti-infectious sulfur and vitamins A, D and E are among the most valuable along with a high concentration of proteins and amino acids.

Micro-algae are remarkably adaptable.

They are invisible to the naked eye and have been present on the planet for more than three billion years. Main components of phytoplankton, micro-algae populate the ocean depths with their enormous diversity. There are approximately 100,000 to several million different species. They provide more than 70% of the oxygen on earth and are one of the first links in the ocean food chain. They participated in the creation of the earth’s current atmosphere and the deacidification of the oceans. In other words, they are the origin of life on earth and, therefore, the origin of our skin cells. During this long evolution, micro-algae have acquired very interesting adaptability and resistance mechanisms, superior to those of plants.

Marine micro-organisms have enormous potential.

When standing beside the ocean, the vastness that unfolds before our eyes is hard to ignore. Yet 90% of marine resources are invisible to the naked eye. This infinitely small world is populated by marine micro-organisms, the majority of which is totally unknown to us. We know very little about them and yet what we have discovered gives us a glimpse of the countless number of benefits for our skin. Some marine micro-organisms synthesize unique molecules, meaning there are no terrestrial equivalents. Each of these molecules also has its own composition and structure, with potential benefits that are entirely new. When thousands of marine micro-organisms each produce a single molecule with unique applications, we can see the unique cosmetic potential.

After years of exploration, the sea continues to amaze us and give us the resources to invent the cosmetics of tomorrow.

Discover our selection of iconic facial products and indulge your skin in all the benefits of the sea.