Prickly Pear, Thermal Water and More Global Beauty Ingredients to Try

The beauty industry has officially gone international like never before. As customers continue to seek natural, high-quality products that promise science-driven results, these brands have scoured the globe in search of the very best beauty ingredients our planet has to offer.

From fir buds harvested from Germany’s Black Forest to prickly pears picked in Puebla, Mexico and Hungarian thermal water sourced from Budapest, these innovative product launches are setting a new standard for ethically sourced clean ingredients in the beauty scene—and we’re so here for it.

Annemarie Börlind Natuneo Powder-To-Foam Cleanser

The Ingredient: Fir Buds

The Source: Germany’s Black Forest

German skincare brand Annemarie Börlind has made it its mission to source ingredients through sustainable wild harvesting whenever possible. “For our newest line, Natuneo, we hyper-fermented wild-harvested fir buds from Germany’s Black Forest to create the powerful PF4 complex, which delivers antioxidant effects,” says Alicia Lindner, co-CEO of the brand and granddaughter of founder Annemarie Lindner.

The Black Forest is a major source of other ingredients regularly used by the brand, too. The Rose Blossom Vital Care line uses stem cells from the Black Forest rose, and all Annemarie Börlind skincare products are made with thermal spring water from a 152.4-metre-deep well containing water from the Northern Black Forest, which is free of chlorine, pesticide and herbicide residue as well as other chemicals commonly found in tap water.

Klorane Quenching Shampoo

The Ingredient: Prickly Pear

The Source: Puebla, Mexico

French brand Klorane (responsible for one of the best dry shampoos on the market—IYKYK) has just launched a line of three products—shampoo, conditioner and a mask—featuring prickly pear as the main ingredient.

“Prickly pear was chosen for the Hydration & Shine collection because it provides deep hydration,” explains William Gauthier, the brand’s training expert. In fact, it’s been found to be more hydrating than glycerine, a popular natural humectant. Prickly pear “locks water in the hair’s cortex and creates a hydrating shield on the hair’s surface,” says Gauthier. “You can find it in abundance in Mexico.” For this launch, Klorane turned to a family farm that responsibly harvests prickly pear in the Mexican state of Puebla.

Omorovicza Elixir

The Ingredient: Hungarian Thermal Water

The Source: Budapest

Luxury skincare brand Omorovicza is known for creating products that are inspired by Budapest’s rich 2,000-year-old bathing culture that includes protected thermal spring monuments around the city. Its latest launch? The Elixir, formulated with the brand’s patented Healing Concentrate.

The concentrate is made by bio-fermenting Budapest thermal water, a process that transforms its 26 minerals into bio-available molecules that the skin can then absorb and benefit from. The crust of the earth is thinner in Hungary, so as water makes its way through brittle rock pockets, it harvests minerals and increases its potency on the way to the surface, where it flows. The impressive Healing Concentrate has been clinically proven to improve skin hydration, elasticity and firmness.

This article first appeared in FASHION’s April 2025 issue. Find out more here.