Environmental Advocates Want Manufacturers to Disclose Household-Cleaner Ingredi

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Environmental Advocates Want Manufacturers to Disclose Household-Cleaner

Ingredients

Posted by Al Tompkins at 12:01 AM on Feb. 15, 2010

Environmental groups and the American Lung Association want a New York court to

force the manufacturers of common household cleaners to list the ingredients of

their products. If the groups win in New York, they plan to take their demands

nationwide.

The Associated Press reported:

" The case comes amid growing concerns about potential toxins lurking in consumer

goods, including the heavy metal cadmium in jewelry and the chemical bisphenol A

in baby bottles. While lawyers argued the cleaning-products case in New York, a

Senate subcommittee in Washington held a hearing to examine current science on

the public's exposure to toxic chemicals.

" Some studies have linked cleaning product components to asthma, antibiotic

resistance, hormone changes and other health problems. The industry's major

trade group, the Soap and Detergent Assn., assails the research as flawed. It

says the products are safe if used correctly and notes that cleaning can itself

help stop the spread of disease.

" Federal environmental laws don't require most household cleaning products to

list their ingredients, though there are congressional proposals to change that.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission requires hazard warning labels on some

cleansers, and the National Institutes of Health offer some health and safety

information for hundreds of cleaning products, drawn from data gathered for

industrial use.

" Cleanser industry groups unveiled their own ingredient-listing initiative last

month, offering information on participating manufacturers' websites. New

York-based Colgate-Palmolive, Cincinnati-based Procter & Gamble and several

other industry heavyweights are participating. "

Many large companies now list the ingredients on their Web sites. For example,

Clorox lists all of the company's products so you can see what they are made of.

The Soap and Detergent Association Web site said:

" The Soap and Detergent Association (SDA), the Consumer Specialty Products

Association (CSPA), and the Canadian Consumer Specialty Products Association

(CCSPA) have developed a Consumer Product Ingredient Communication Initiative

[PDF] as a way to provide consumers with information about the ingredients in

products in four major categories: air care, automotive care, cleaning, and

polishes and floor maintenance products.

" Lists of ingredients for most of the cleaning products consumers use every day

are now available. "

[Here] " you will find details on where and how companies will feature their

specific ingredient communications. "