About the Campaign for Safe
Cosmetics
The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics is a coalition of women’s, public health,
labor, environmental health and consumer-rights groups. Our goal is to protect
the health of consumers and workers by requiring the health and beauty industry
to phase out the use of chemicals linked to cancer, birth defects and other
health problems, and replace them with safer alternatives.
Personal care products like shampoo, conditioner, after shave, lotion and
makeup are not regulated by the FDA or any other government agency. It is
perfectly legal and very common for companies to use ingredients that are known
or suspected to be carcinogens, mutagens or reproductive toxins in the their
products. Consumers buy these products at drug stores, grocery stores, online or
in salons, usually without questioning the product’s safety.
We are asking cosmetics and personal care products companies to sign the Compact for Safe Cosmetics (also
known as the Compact for the Global Production of Safer Health and Beauty
Products), a pledge to remove toxic chemicals and replace them with safer
alternatives in every market they serve. As of August 2007, 600 companies have signed the Compact -- and
that number increases every day!
The Campaign works with endorsing organizations and individuals so that
together we can ramp up the pressure on companies that have not signed the
Compact and continue to sell us toxic products, including Estee Lauder, L’Oreal,
Avon and many others. Our founding
organizations also work closely with other allies to reform the chemical
policies that allow for toxic ingredients in consumer products in the first
place.
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