导航菜单
From January 24 to February 6, 2026, 12 new cosmetic ingredients (NCIs) have completed notifications with China's National Medical Products Administration (NMPA).
The technical requirements for the 12 NCIs mentioned above have not been disclosed, and they have not yet entered the safety monitoring period. Among them, biotech-based ingredients represent the largest share and have emerged as a key focus in China's NCI notification landscape in recent years.
Chemical ingredients are characterized by well-defined molecular structures and relatively mature manufacturing processes. Among all NCIs notified to date, chemical ingredients still represent the largest category.
This ingredient marks the company's 19th successfully notified NCI and its first chemical ingredient. Traditionally associated with Yunnan specialty botanicals, Botanee has built the Yunnan Characteristic Plant Extraction Laboratory (known as YUNKE Lab), screening over 2,000 plant species to create a comprehensive ingredient library covering functions from soothing and barrier repair to anti-aging and brightening.
Biotech-based ingredients account for the largest proportion among the 12 NCIs. This group includes ingredients produced through microbial fermentation, enzymatic processes, or cell culture technologies, such as fermentation filtrates, bioactive peptides, biotechnologically produced lipids, and cell-derived botanical materials. These ingredients tend to exhibit higher structural complexity and innovative functional positioning, which also means that their technical and safety evaluation often requires more comprehensive data packages. In recent years, this category has become a major focus of China's NCI registrations, highlighting the increasing role of biotechnology in cosmetic ingredient innovation.
Licorice (Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch), a perennial herb of the Fabaceae family, is already well represented in IECIC 2021, with many licorice-based cosmetic ingredients such as root powder, flavonoids, glycyrrhetinic acid, and glycyrrhetinyl stearyl ester, primarily used as moisturizers and skin protectants. The newly notified NCI, Glycyrrheticin Glucuronide, is intended for use as a skin protectant.
Notably, this notification was fully supported by ZMUni Compliance Center, building on its long-term collaboration with SENCL and its previous assistance in successfully notifying two other NCIs for the company.
β-Nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN) is a highly sought-after ingredient across multiple sectors.
Cosmetics: Since the first NMN cosmetic ingredient was notified on January 24, 2022, a total of 13 NMN NCIs have been notified in China (including 2 later canceled), making it the most frequently notified NCI category in the cosmetic sector.
Food and Supplements: NMN continues to attract strong interest in the food and supplement sectors. Major regulatory updates in December 2025 clarified its legal status in the U.S. and Australia, providing greater certainty for its use in dietary supplements and functional wellness products.
Mannosylerythritol lipids (MELs) are a type of biosurfactant known for their biodegradability, low toxicity, and excellent biocompatibility. They have broad application potential across medicine, personal care, food, agriculture, and environmental remediation, and are widely recognized as one of the most promising biosurfactants available today.
Queeta Biotech is an innovative, high-tech company leveraging biosynthetic technologies to build both platform capabilities and product portfolios. ZMUni is proud to have assisted the company in successfully notifying this ingredient.
Rhodiola crenulata is mainly distributed in high-altitude regions of Tibet, western Sichuan, northwestern Yunnan, and Qinghai in China. Known in traditional Tibetan medicine as the "Ginseng of the Plateau" or "Divine Herb," it has a long history of use and is the sole source of Rhodiola listed in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia. Its roots are rich in active compounds such as salidroside, which was also successfully notified three times by multiple companies in 2025. Due to overharvesting and habitat destruction, wild populations are now critically endangered and listed as Endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List.
The notifier, Inoherb, founded in 2000, follows a herbal skincare philosophy and is committed to providing consumers with safe, effective, and pleasant-to-use herbal skincare products. Its Rhodiola-based product line remains one of the company's most recognized offerings.
The botanical extracts in this category are derived from specific plant species and plant parts using relatively traditional extraction methods. Owing to China's vast geography and rich plant biodiversity, together with strong governmental support for the development of innovative and characteristic plant-sourced ingredients, botanical extracts have become one of the fastest-growing categories in NCI notifications over the past two years.
In August 2025, Shenzhen Hujia Technology filed a patent titled "Application and Preparation Method of Alhagi Extract in Topical Skin Formulations" (CN120501680A). According to the patent abstract, the invention discloses the use of Alhagi extract in topical formulations for reducing skin redness and describes two preparation methods for obtaining the extract. The Alhagi extract demonstrated significant soothing and anti-redness effects and can be incorporated into topical formulations targeting skin redness. Additionally, the patent notes that the extract can inhibit melanin production, making it suitable for use in whitening, brightening, and skin tone-improving topical formulations.
Shenzhen Hujia Technology, founded in 2014, is the parent company of the emerging domestic skincare brand HBN. As a pioneer in retinol-based anti-aging products, HBN embraces an innovation-driven philosophy focused on visible results, developing high-performance, efficacy-driven skincare. In 2025, HBN was recognized by the authoritative Sullivan report as the top-selling A-retinol skincare brand in China.
