Thirty per cent of beauty and personal care product ingredients lack thorough safety data, according to a report published by ChemFORWARD.
Beauty & Personal Care Ingredient Intelligence Report analysed the ingredient lists of 8,500 products.
The study found nearly 318,000 ingredients listed but only 2,279 unique ingredients across all products.
Of the 2,279 unique ingredients, ChemFORWARD said 66% are well understood and considered safe, whereas 3% “have known high hazards or are considered emerging chemical classes of concern”. Some 30% have gaps in their safety data.
ChemFORWARD, a collaboration between beauty brands, ingredient manufacturers including Dow and Inolex, and the nonprofit Environmental Defense Fund, stressed the need for full chemical hazard characterization of ingredients as an “urgent imperative to fully understand their human and environmental impacts”.
The report identified a top ten of ingredients for further characterization, and ten priority ingredients for elimination.
The top ten ingredients most in need of analysis are mica, trimethylsiloxysilicate, Nylon-12, Red 6 (CI 15850), Manganese Violet (CI 77742), Carmine (CI 75470), Octyldodecyl Stearoyl Stearate, Octyldodecanol, Bismuth Oxychloride (CI 77163) and Phenyl Trimethicone.
Cyclopentasiloxane tops the list of chemicals for elimination, followed by BHT (Butylated Hydroxytoluene), Chromium oxide greens (CI 77288), Methylparaben, Carbomer (chlorinated), Red 30 (CI 73360), Red 27 (CI 45410), Butylphenyl Methylpropional (Lilial), Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate (Octinoxate), Aluminum Powder (CI 77000).
The report models an approach that could be adopted throughout the industry: conducting baseline ingredient audits, investing in chemical hazard assessments to close data gaps, and phasing out high-hazard chemicals as the pathway to transition to safer chemistry.
There is also significant emphasis on the flaws with the current practice of restricting specific chemicals without clear guidance on safer substitutes, leading to regrettable substitutions where one harmful chemical is replaced with another, potentially perpetuating the problem.
The report concludes with a call to action, urging the industry to continue investing in chemical hazard assessments, eliminate high-hazard chemicals, and embrace the transition to safer chemistry.
“By prioritizing hazard transparency and collaboration, the beauty and personal care industry can create a future where products are verified to be inherently safe for both human health and the environment,” it said.
Stacy Glass, co-founder and executive director of ChemFORWARD, added: “This report shows that beauty and safety can—and must—go hand in hand.
“With the power of shared data and collaboration, the beauty industry is on the cusp of a transformation that prioritizes human health and environmental responsibility.”
