It’s a tough time to navigate the world of "clean" beauty. What started as an effort to steer the industry towards quality, eco-conscious formulas turned into a wildly popular marketing strategy, which has left customers unsure of which products to use as brands set varying standards of what "clean" means to them. Some brands prioritize an eco-conscious mindset while others focus on formula, and then there's Farmacy—which works to balance both in a conscious, committed philosophy meant to last (read: not just fancy marketing speak). The brand's products feature farm-sourced ingredients (think honey, apples, and greens) that feel instantly familiar, balancing responsible sourcing with efficacy as well as production and packaging strategies that focus on sustainability. Ahead, learn all about the brand and its philosophy, including 13 of our favorite products.
Farmacy
Founded by: David Chung, in 2014.
Based in: New York, NY
Pricing: $$-$$$ (most products are $40 and above)
Best known for: Being an eco-conscious beauty brand focused on using responsible, farm-sourced ingredients to make thoughtful, cruelty-free skincare and body care formulas.
Most popular product: Green Clean Cleansing Balm
Other brands you'll love: Youth to the People, Drunk Elephant, Glow Recipe, Tatcha
Fun Fact: One Green Clean is sold every second globally. Also, the cult favorite Honey Halo can improve skin hydration by up to eight times, according to clinical testing conducted eight hours after application.
About the Brand
Farmacy champions everything clean beauty stands for, both in practice and in product. However, on paper, you might not even realize Farmacy is a skincare brand at first. According to Catherine Birli, the brand's global head of PR and partnerships, “Farmacy was founded on the premise of bringing people closer to nature and finding ways to help incorporate nature into their daily lives.” But what distinguishes Farmacy from, say, ecotourism, is its “farm-to-face” philosophy, inspired by the age-old farm-to-table method, to ensure only high-quality, vetted ingredients make it into each product.
On that note, Farmacy knows a few things about farming. “We are farmer-cultivated, science-activated,” Birli said. “We work with pioneers in sustainable farming, and our team works to unlock the power of those naturals to create clinically-validated formulas with proven results.”
In creating its ever-expanding collection of products, the brand abides by a list of 10 “Clean Commandments,” geared toward only using ingredients that are free of known irritants and harmful substances, non-GMO, cruelty-free, tested for use on all skin types, and sourced from local and organic farms. “We take pride in redefining the business of beauty and being cruelty-free and vegan conscious,” Birli said.
To that end, many ingredients used in Farmacy products are upcycled from the food industry to keep them from going to waste. Farmacy is also Leaping Bunny Certified as well as partnered with ClearForMe, a comprehensive ingredient database that features over two million ingredients to help standardize information and make product discovery more transparent for customers.
But enough of what’s inside—the brand puts an equal-amount of effort towards its packaging, which is 100% waste-free, meaning every bit is made with recycled material and is recyclable itself. And remember that old phrase, "Waste not, want not?" Farmacy lives by this philosophy, as Birli says the brand’s true focus is on giving back, fighting food insecurity and promoting ethical production: “We strive to make our communities better by partnering with organizations such as Feeding America in the US and Second Harvest in Canada to help fight hunger and reduce the needless waste of food.” In the beauty industry's quest to become more responsible in terms of sustainability and ecology, Farmacy is truly setting a conscious example.
The Best Farmacy Products
Honey Halo Ultra-Hydrating Ceramide Moisturizer
Need a daily cream that does it all? Honey, it’s here. It’s thick, it’s rich, and it’s loaded with buckwheat honey to soothe, hydrate, and protect skin for an instant glow. Plant-based ceramides and shea butter perform double duty in this moisturizer, locking in vital hydration while replenishing barrier function.
Green Clean Makeup Meltaway Cleansing Balm
All it takes is one use to understand why this cleansing balm has achieved fan-favorite status (and won plenty of awards along the way). It does everything a cleansing balm should, but with all the bells and whistles that make it worthy of a daily ritual. An oil blend melts away every trace of makeup, papaya extract gently exfoliates, and the citrus-inspired scent whisks you away to a tropical destination worlds away from your bathroom sink. There's also a fragrance-free version if you have sensitive skin or simply prefer to skip out on the scent.
Strawberry Shortcake Clean Makeup Meltaway Cleansing Balm
This fruit-based alternative to Green Clean contains upcycled strawberry seed extract to help you achieve silky smooth, hydrated skin when cleansing. Making it even more satisfying to add to your routine, Farmacy helps donate 20 meals to Feeding America with each purchase of this product.
10% Niacinamide Night Mask
This pudding-like cream mask harnesses the myriad talents of one of beauty's most hardworking ingredients—niacinamide—to balance oil and revitalize skin’s appearance, as well as barrier-boosting panthenol and a slew of natural extracts (like upcycled blueberry seed oil) to leave your face with a fresh, healthy glow.
10% Waterless Vitamin C Serum
This vitamin C serum literally ticks off all the boxes: It’s oil-free, stable, loaded with upcycled fruit and vegetable extracts for a radiance boost, and quickly absorbs into skin for maximum comfort and efficiency. Here’s to a vitamin C with the potential to upgrade almost any routine.
Wake Up Honey Eye Cream
Take the brightening, antioxidant benefits of vitamin C to your under-eyes with this eye cream, which uses a highly stable form of the ingredient to reduce the size and intensity of dark circles both instantly and over time. Caffeine and cranberry peptide depuff and reduce the appearance of fine lines, while the product's titular honey blend works together with hyaluronic acid to keep your eye area soothed and hydrated.
1% Vitamin A Retinol Serum
Taking the natural route to retinol, this product features two potent retinoids to help firm skin, lessen the appearance of fine lines, and bring about an overall smoother look. Retinal quickly gets to work, while encapsulated retinol slow-releases while you sleep. The formula is also stacked with upcycled Kalahari melon and raspberry seed oils for a moisture boost, plus ceramides to help support skin barrier function.
Honey Potion Plus Ceramide Hydration Mask
If you find your face has had too much of anything—think sun, wind, or active ingredients—a healthy slather of this jelly mask should help balance things out in no time. The formula takes honey to the third power, with buckwheat honey to nourish, propolis to soothe, and royal jelly to promote healing.
Honeymoon Glow AHA Resurfacing Night Serum
If nature could provide a facelift in a bottle, this comes pretty close. With 14% AHAs derived from lactic, glycolic, citric, and fruit acids, this heavy-duty serum deeply exfoliates to sweep away dead cells and resurface skin, while salicylic acid from willow bark helps balance oil and reduce the appearance of pores. Hyaluronic acid and honey send hydration deep into skin, leaving you with a super-natural glow.
Deep Sweep 2% BHA Pore Cleaning Toner
I’m just going to steal the mic for a sec and say this stuff is awesome. It’s potent, with 2% salicylic acid and papaya enzymes providing some pretty strong exfoliating action, but the alcohol-free formula is never too strong, thanks to a few select natural extracts that work to nourish and soothe skin. Splash it on morning and/or night as an insurance policy that helps prevent breakouts and midday shine.
Daily Greens Oil-Free Gel Moisturizer
This gel moisturizer feels like your favorite moisturizer and serum got together and had a baby. The result is so light that it feels fresh as it glides on, but it contains so many skin-loving ingredients, you can actually feel it working. Hyaluronic and polyglutamic acids increase hydration, niacinamide and galacturonic acid help balance oil, and moringa and papaya extracts leave skin smooth and refreshed.
Brighten Up 3% TXA Toner
If you're dealing with dark spots and/or hyperpigmentation, this one's for you. This toner uses 3% tranexamic acid (TXA) to help reduce the look of dark spots in as little as one week, plus azelaic acid and 5% PHA to even tone, gently resurface skin, and boost radiance.
Apple Lip Smoothie
An apple a day keeps the dry lips away with this peptide-powered formula. This balm brings together peptides, vitamin C, and apple extract to plump, smooth, and reduce fine lines, and the results only get better with time. In addition to leaving your lips pillowy soft, the product also leaves a glossy finish, so it's a great choice for completing a dewy makeup look.