Marie Veronique Organics Calls for Change in Skincare Product Legislation
Supports Annie Leonard’s The Story of Cosmetics
07.21.2010– Marie Veronique Organics, a Berkeley based organic skin care company and member of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, is passionate about creating change in the current state of federal skin care product regulation. CEO Hillary Peterson explains, "People unknowingly expose themselves to harmful chemicals every day and it is time for consumers to better understand what is in their everyday products as well as for the cosmetics industry to be held accountable." Hillary and founder Marie Veronique Nadeau have created a legislation wish list including photostability labeling, nanoparticle labeling, and better UVA protection labeling.
Photostability labeling: Chemical sunscreens degrade rather quickly in the presence of UV rays. Some sunscreens, after an hour on the skin, will begin to generate more free radicals than if the user wore no sunscreen at all. A chemical-based sunscreen’s label should contain information on how long to wait between applications.
Nanoparticle labeling: Nanoparticle safety is an open-ended issue at the moment, with some arguing that they are safe, and others pointing out the need for more testing before reaching such a determination. At the very least, the consumer ought to be able to decide whether she wants them or not in her skin care products. Marie Veronique Organics believes that any ingredient in nanoparticle form in a skincare product should be clearly indicated on the label.
UVA labeling: Marie Veronique Organics believes that UVA labeling needs to go beyond “broad spectrum,” and identify the range of protection. UVA wavelengths range in size from 320 nm to 400 nm, yet some sunscreens which claim to be “broad-spectrum” do not protect from wavelengths up to 400 nm in size.
Annie Leonard’s clever new video, The Story of Cosmetics, which debuts July 21st, entertains while it educates the public about the serious problems of toxins in personal care products, and offers suggestions on how we can move the industry away from the use of hazardous chemicals and toward safer alternatives. The video exposes the major loopholes in US federal law that gives the personal care industry free rein in terms of what goes into products we use every day.
Annie has spent nearly two decades investigating and organizing on environmental health and justice issues. She has traveled to 40 countries, visiting literally hundreds of factories where our stuff is made and dumps where our stuff is dumped. Witnessing first hand the horrendous impacts of both over- and under- consumption around the world, Annie is fiercely dedicated to reclaiming and transforming our industrial and economic systems so they serve, rather than undermine, ecological sustainability and social equity.
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