Dr. Bronner’s Activism Campaign Against Fake Organic Brands

Whew! Why is it so hard for us to believe? It is very disappointing to hear about so much greenwashing going on. Consumers, we have to be on our toes!

Dr. Bronner’s press release:

Top-selling natural soap brand Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps applauds the final recommendation by the Certification, Accreditation, and Compliance Committee (CACC) of the USDA’s National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) on Solving the Problem of Mislabeled Organic Personal Care Products set forth this week. The recommendation urges the National Organic Program (NOP) to regulate personal care products and “ensure consumers and businesses alike that the products have an unquestioned home in the USDA National Organic
Program.” The current regulatory approach fails to protect consumers from misleading and deceptive organic labeling of personal care because compliance with the NOP is currently voluntary, not mandatory.

President of Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps, David Bronner said, “Dr. Bronner’s strongly believes that the best and most effective way to protect consumers of organic personal care products is for the USDA to make the National Organic Program (NOP) standards mandatory for personal care. We applaud this recommendation as a step forward in improving the current regulatory regime.” The Certification, Accreditation and Compliance Committee will present the recently released document to the NOSB at its public meeting in early November for a vote. Dr. Bronner’s full formal comments submitted to the NOSB can be found at the link below. In related news, Whole Foods is requiring that all supposedly “natural” and “organic” personal care products in their stores test below 10 parts per million for the probable carcinogen 1,4 Dioxane. 1,4 Dioxane is produced when the petrochemical Ethylene Oxide is attached to primary cleansing and moisturizing ingredients in a process called Ethoxylation. “We’re fed up with organic cheater brands who use high-foaming ethoxylated detergents in bodywashes and shampoos that produce 1,4 Dioxane contamination” says David Bronner. “Petrochemical compounds like Ethylene Oxide have no place in organic personal care ingredients. This is just
one of many violations of basic organic criteria by organic cheater brands, and demonstrates why federal NOP regulation is necessary.”

In July, Dr. Bronner’s filed its Second Amended Complaint against numerous personal care companies that use non-organic pesticide-intensive agricultural and/or petrochemical material to make the main cleansing and moisturizing ingredients of their mislabeled ‘Organic’ products. That Complaint charges defendants with false advertising in violation of the federal Lanham Act, based on the fact that the labeling and marketing of their products as “Organic” is misleading and confusing consumers. Defendants had the case transferred to federal district court in San Jose, CA and moved to dismiss the case on the grounds that USDA/NOP is considering
regulating personal care products even though these same defendants strongly oppose such regulation. Arguments on those motions will be held on Friday, September 25. The entire Second Amended Complaint along with background on the case is posted online at:
http://www.drbronner.com/usda_organic_body_care.html
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On their website, we’re urged to boycott these “fake” organic brands.
Amazon Organics, Avalon Organics, Desert Essence Organics, Earth’s Best Organic, Giovanni Organic Cosmetics, Head Organics, JASON Pure Natural and Organic, Nature’s Gate Organics, Organics by Noah’s Naturals

Dr. Bronners also urges us to buy these certified USDA organic brands.
Alteya Organics, Baby Bear Shop, Badger, Bubble and Bee Organic, Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps, Indian Meadow Herbals, Intelligent Nutrients, Kimberly Parry Organics, Little Angel, Mercola, Miessence Certified Organics, Nature’s Paradise, OGmama and OGbaby, Organicare, Organic Essence, Origins Organics, Purely Shea, Rainwater Organic Lotion, Rose Tattoo Aftercare, SoCal Cleanse, Sensibility Soaps/Nourish, Terressentials, Trillium Organics, Vermont Soap

Do you look for the certification logo when you buy?

Maybe going with the word “Organic” on the label isn’t enough.

Read more about the campaign

Dr. Bronner’s video on the topic:

Men and What They Think About Women Wearing Make-Up

Ok, my previous post was for the ladies. Do any men read Living in a Chemical Soup?

What do you think about women wearing make-up? Do you prefer the natural look? Of course, it depends and it really is up to a woman what we want to wear, not a man, but I’d love to hear from the fellas.

Women and Aging Chemicals: Opting out of Make-up and Redefining Normal

Why Does Normal=Ignorance and Apathy Surrounding Cosmetics?

Today I read this headline “The average British woman “hosts” 515 chemicals on her body every day, according to a new study.” In a poll of 2,016 women, it was determined that most of the products contain tens or even hundreds of “chemicals”. Fragrance alone can contain hundreds of synthetic chemicals.
Full article.

Let’s not quibble about the word “chemical”, as everything is made from chemicals. And let’s not look at the fact that a deodorant maker did the poll. Let’s look at some lifestyle choices and what is considered normal today. And why.

1. Do you know what is in the products you put on your skin? Most of us have to say, “No”.

More than a third of the women who took part in the study were unaware of the key ingredients in their toiletries, with only nine percent aware of most of the ingredients in the cosmetics they put on each day.

Is it a matter of trust? It’s on the shelves, therefore it must be safe?

2. Does the majority of women care about what’s in their cosmetics? No.

More than 70 percent of the women polled said they were not concerned about the number of chemicals they put on their skin and only one in 10 opted for chemical-free toiletries when shopping.

So normal= Being ignorant about what is in products and not caring.

Why? Many reasons. Marketing campaigns “teach” us how to use products without highlighting their harmful effects. Entire TV shows educate us on how to apply products but never tell us what’s in them. Another reason is we use what our mothers or friends use. Habit.

I was shopping for my MIL’s birthday yesterday. As I combed the cosmetics counter, I realized how free I felt no longer wearing the stuff. And I sympathized with how confusing the process now is, thanks to greenwashing. I grabbed a very expensive bar of soap from a shelf, thinking it would be a lovely gift. Because it said “Natural” on it. It wasn’t until I got it home that I realize I’d made a bad choice. Confusion is key in the public making bad choices. The only remedy is education-knowing what ingredients are in products, knowing their health effects and finding products that are truly non-toxic.

I now feel freed from the pressures to wear make-up, get my hair dyed and cover my skin with who the heck knows what. Free from the habit. If I want to, I will but I don’t feel I need to. In my teens and twenties, I loved putting on make-up. Now, I prefer healthy-looking skin and shiny hair instead of being covered up. Heck, a few days ago, I was asked to show my ID at the liquor store!! I couldn’t help but wonder something. In today’s obsessive search for youth and beauty, as prescribed by cosmetic companies and their so-called anti-aging remedies, is the real answer something much simpler?

What if instead of using more and more “anti-aging products”, we chose to go natural? What if we didn’t use anything but food-grade oils and pure, unscented soaps? Would our skin, hair, nails, eye-lashes, armpits, feet and hands look younger? Take it from someone who’s “gone naked” for ten years, it’s worth trying.

I realize my opting out is not the norm, nor would I try to impose my decision on other women. What I do hope is that the women who hate wearing make-up and want to go natural will not be bound by tradition or pressure to wear it.

What do you think? Do you like wearing all the products that are just considered “normal”? Would you like to cut down? Do you feel pressure to wear “too many” products?

And finally, do you ever wonder if the products that are supposed to be helping us look younger are really aging us? Perhaps putting nothing at all would be better than putting irritating synthetic chemicals on our skin and hair.

For more on what’s in cosmetics, go to my podcast interview with Stacy Malkan, author of “Not Just a Pretty Face.”

Toxnet

TOXNET – US National Library of Medicine’s Databases on toxicology, hazardous chemicals, environmental health, and toxic releases.

Visit Toxnet

EWG Tests over 20 Cleaners used in Schools

School Cleaners Test Results

EWG tested over 20 cleaners used in schools in California, and detected hundreds of air contaminants not listed as ingredients by manufacturers.

Further testing shows that cleaning a model classroom using 3 widely used, certified green products produces far less air pollution than cleaning the same classroom with 3 common conventional cleaners.

See results.