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Our Philosophy | What’s Inside Our Products | Ingredients Glossary | Reviews

Ingredients We Never Use – And Why You’re Better Off Without Them

At Norfolk Natural Living, we’re all about beautiful things that work—and work beautifully. So when it comes to what we put into our cleaning and laundry products, we’re picky. Really picky. The sort of picky that reads the back of labels in small print and then cross-references the ingredients while muttering “absolutely not”.

That’s because many common household products are packed with chemicals that are—how shall we put it?—less than ideal. For your skin, your lungs, and the aquatic life just trying to live its best life downstream. So here’s our list of ingredients we’ll never touch, with a splash of detail and zero guilt.


✘ Optical Brighteners

What they claim to do: Make your whites brighter.
What they actually do: Trick the eye. Irritate the skin. Hang about in rivers being unhelpful.
We prefer honesty—especially in laundry.


✘ Chlorine

Smells like: A swimming pool.
Feels like: A bad idea in a bathroom.
Chlorine is tough on lungs and doesn’t belong in everyday cleaning. We use gentler alternatives that are just as effective—and don’t make your home smell like a leisure centre.


✘ Petroleum-Derived Ingredients

Also known as: Mineral oil, paraffin, PEGs.
Why we swerve them: Unsustainable, pore-clogging, and—let’s face it—nobody wants their skin coated in petrol byproduct. We stick with nourishing plant oils instead.


✘ Phthalates

Found in: Most synthetic fragrances.
Known for: Disrupting hormones.
We’d rather not. Our natural scents come from real essential oils, not chemical trickery.


✘ Titanium Dioxide (nano)

Tiny but mighty concerning. The IARC thinks so too. We don’t go near it—why risk it?


✘ GMOs

Still a topic of fierce dinner party debate. We prefer transparency, traceability, and ingredients that sound like something you might find in a garden rather than a laboratory.


✘ Phosphates

Bad news for rivers, lakes, and any duck with half a brain. Banned in the UK already, and certainly not in anything we make.


✘ Methylisothiazolinone

Unpronounceable and unkind. A common preservative that causes contact dermatitis. No, thank you.


✘ Tallow & Sodium Tallowate

What is it? Rendered animal fat.
Where we stand: We’re vegan, cruelty-free, and not in the business of bottling butchery.


✘ Triclosan

Sounds like something in a sci-fi lab. Interferes with hormones and may promote antibiotic resistance. We’ll pass.


✘ Benzisothiazolinone

Known to cause: Skin sensitisation, allergies


As we learn new things about ingredients - we will continue to add to this list.  It's not exhaustive - but if you have any questions at all about any of our products - please do just get in touch.  Hello@norfolknaturalliving.com

Explore: Laundry and Garment Care | Cleaning Products | Sustainable Refills

Got a question? Get in touch - we’re happy to help!