Campaign for Safe Cosmetics: Hundreds of cosmetic companies met goals

SAN FRANCISCO — The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics announced on Wednesday that 321 cosmetics companies have met the goals of the Compact for Safe Cosmetics, the campaign’s voluntary pledge to avoid chemicals banned by health agencies outside the United States and to fully disclose product ingredients. An additional 111 companies made “significant progress toward those goals,” the campaign stated.

More than 1,500 companies signed the compact from its inception in 2004 until August 2011, when the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics closed the compact project. The research team at Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep database developed tools for tracking each company’s compliance with the goals of the compact. Through these tools, the campaign determined that 321 companies achieved “Champion” status by fulfilling the goals of the compact, and an additional 111 companies reached “Innovator” status by getting most of the way there.

According to the campaign, the “Champions” are demonstrating best practices by:

• Making effective products without using ingredients prohibited for use in cosmetics in other countries;   


• Disclosing all their ingredients, including those that make up “fragrance”; and


• Working together with nonprofit health groups to increase market demand for safe, sustainable products and practices.