Organic Body Care Fraud

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Beware of mislabeled organic skincare products, warns us Organic Consumers Association (OCA). “Organic body care fraud” as the Association calls it is a serious matter and it needs to be stopped. Today the shelves are full of personal care products and cosmetics are mislabeled as organic, natural, botanical, biological, vegan…Half of these skin care product are not certified to national organic standards. On November 5, 2009 , the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) Voted to “Crack Down on Fake Organic Cosmetics.”

NOSB along with OCA has been pushing the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to enforce organic standards in skin care and cosmetics and to regulate the use of the word “organic.” Consumers and activists alike expect USDA to get tough on labeling fraud. Organic label should mean more to consumers and USDA has a responsibility to restore confidence in the organic label, and in organic skin care products and organic cosmetics.

USDA cannot afford to take this issue lightly. Mislabeling ...
... is a crime, but not labeling is a serious crime with severe consequences. Consumers should be educated about synthetic carcinogen ingredients that are disguised as aromas or fragrances. Americans trust these brand names, but this multi-billion dollar cosmetic industry does not look out for consumers. Shelves are full of products that contain parabens (ethylparaben, methylparaben), petrochemicals, sodium laurel sulfate, additives, silicones, genetically modified organisms and some other toxic ingredients that pose great risks to our health. The integrity of the word organic is in danger, and this represents an insult to those organic skin care and organic cosmetic manufacturers that put their energy and time into this.

Thankfully, there are some positive developments across the nation and around the world. People are taking action. They are urging their representative to take a tougher stance on these companies. They realize that they are responsible for their own health and they can change the course of events by voicing their opinion. They demand safer skin care products, full explanation. They want to know what they eat, but also what they wear and put on their skin. Organic is not a luxury, and organic skin care and organic cosmetic is not a niche market.

But the adoption of organic skin care and cosmetic standards in the US is far from realization. Developing national organic standards is not difficult but meets resistance from diverse interests. For food and textiles, USDA regulates the use of “organic” label but not for the cosmetic and skin care industry. Opposition remains substantive and we are nowhere near the development of such standards. Yet to counter such opposition, the number of consumers demanding explanation is growing. This is a healthy sign for the organic skin care and cosmetic manufacturers.