New Technology Platform innovations & ingredients from Ashland at NYSCC Suppliers’ Day

From the Ashland Super Wetters Technology Platform, easy-hance™ wetting agent is a nature-derived, superwetting agent for textured hair. It is claimed to enable faster and more efficient wetting for improved detangling, alignment, and overall performance in both rinse-off and leave-on products. This ingredient helps reduce water use and shortens cleansing routines while enhancing moisture, curl definition, and manageability. With easy-hance™ wetting agent, formulators can reduce reliance on heavy oils and silicones.

At the event, Ashland offered an AI-powered skin evaluation to determine perceived skin age. Described by the company as an award-winning and its major technological breakthrough, eternight™ biofunctional is its first ingredient to focus on the humanin peptide for skin care. Tied to longevity, this mitochondrial peptide is a key driver impacting the 12 hallmarks of aging. 

According to Ashland, AI facial scanning showed skin looked up to four years younger in 28 days.

"We are incredibly excited to return to NYSCC Suppliers' Day and showcase how Ashland is shaping the future of personal care through purposeful innovation," said Michael Lull, director of marketing, Ashland. "From our latest technology platforms to next-generation ingredients like easy-hance™ wetting agent and eternight™ biofunctional, we're delivering high-performance, nature-derived solutions that meet evolving consumer expectations around superior performance, efficiency, and differentiation. Live demonstrations, AI-powered skin insights, and our expanding portfolio of multifunctional ingredients reflect our commitment to advancing both formulation science and the consumer experience."

According to Ashland:

Its first commercial innovation from the Multi-functional Starch Platform, stabileze™ s polymer is a starch-based, multipurpose polymer offering viscosity control, emulsion stabilization, and formulation suspension benefits at low use levels. The ingredient enables the creation of stable formulations while delivering an appealing sensorial experience.

Effisin™ em natural multifunctional is a 100% natural-origin, water-soluble antimicrobial booster that enhances preservation, enabling easy incorporation into a wide range of formulations. Its broad pH stability (3–8) and very low use concentration (0.05%–0.2%) allow formulators to standardize antimicrobial strategies across product lines — reducing cost, complexity, reformulation time, and raw material inventories.

The phyteq™ product family expanded with the introduction of the new phyteq™ raspberry plus multifunctional. This ingredient is an easy-to-use liquid blend and provides the same proven antioxidant and well-aging benefits as phyteq™ raspberry - now complemented by broader antimicrobial performance. Its versatile profile makes it suitable for a wide range of modern formulations, supporting both product protection and skin care claims. With its multifunctional nature and expanded capabilities, phyteq™ raspberry plus offers formulators a multifunctional option for personal care formulations.

Vital et™ sp biofunctional is an optimized Vitamin E derivative complex that activates the skin's calming response. Inspired by biomimetic skincare and the slow cosmetics movement, it delivers the biologically active form of α-tocopherol in a water-soluble format with proven skin delivery. Because a balanced skin is silent skin, its unique 360° soothing benefits are reported to empower the skin to self-rescue against multiple stressors.

N-hance™ ccg 75 cationic guar from the Responsible Solvers™ program is a biodegradable, nature-derived polymer designed to deliver clean aesthetics and medium to high conditioning performance in clear, surfactant-based formulations. It maintains excellent optical clarity while providing effective wet and dry conditioning without heavy buildup, making it well-suited for lightweight, transparent shampoos and cleansers across sulfated and non-sulfated systems. Through this program, Ashland has been increasing the volume of guar harvested annually through educational programs and scientific solutions for sustainable farming while respecting the sourcing relationships and local cultures of small village farmers in Rajasthan, India. The program has helped male and female farmers lower their production cost while increasing their crop yield by approximately 20 percent, thus helping increase farmers' income and expanding the local economy in the small villages.