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News

Industry responds to launch of new i-Phone application on cosmetic ingredients

14 January 2010

You may have seen the recent announcement that a new i-Phone application has launched which claims to help show consumers which ingredients in their cosmetic products could be harmful to their health or to the environment.

The Cosmetic, Toiletry and Perfumery Association (CTPA)* would like to respond to this launch because we believe that it could leave consumers feeling anxious about the safety of the products they enjoy every day.

The CTPA is headed up by the Director General, Dr Chris Flower, who is a chartered biologist and a toxicologist. He would like to allay any concerns:

“The launch of this new i-Phone application is concerning for a number of reasons. Firstly, because it suggests that consumers might find ‘dangerous’ substances in their cosmetics. In Europe, all products sold are subject to strict safety legislation so would never pose a safety threat to consumers. Secondly, because the way it is being promoted, it seems to perpetuate the myth that natural ingredients are not chemicals and are in some way safer than man-made ingredients. In reality, everything is chemical, whether natural or synthetic, and it’s not simply the presence of an ingredient that determines how safe a product is. Qualified safety assessors have to consider a whole range of factors, including the quantity of the ingredient contained in the product, how it reacts with other ingredients and how often the product is used.”

The UK’s cosmetic, personal care and perfumery industry is absolutely behind providing consumers with scientific facts about the ingredients in their products, so that they can make informed choices about what they buy. However, it believes these choices should be grounded in sound science.

Visit our What’s in my cosmetic? section for a guide to many ingredients and terms used for cosmetic products and the Safety Matters section for information on how products are assessed for safety.

 

* CTPA is the UK trade association representing manufacturers and suppliers of cosmetic and personal care products

The Cosmetic, Toiletry and Perfumery Association (CTPA) is an association of manufacturers of cosmetic, toiletry and perfumery products, founded in 1945 to promote the interests of members, primarily with government. That remit has now extended to include the European Commission and many other regulatory bodies, national and international groups.

Members are manufacturers (full members), raw material suppliers and suppliers of services (associate members). Our Council is made up of senior industry representatives from small, medium, large and multi-national companies. Activities are funded through membership subscriptions.

The focus of our work centres on scientific, regulatory and legislative issues. We have a constant dialogue with the UK Government and this process is repeated at European level through COLIPA, the European trade body and internationally through an extensive network of national association contacts.

Visit the CTPA main website »

The Cosmetic, Toiletry and Perfumery Association (CTPA) is the voice of the cosmetic, toiletry and perfumery industry in the UK. Our members vary from small and medium-sized companies to large multi-nationals and include manufacturers, raw material suppliers and service providers.

Our primary goal is to promote good working practice to ensure that consumers are provided with the very best products. To this end, we co-ordinate the industry's viewpoint on key issues such as science, innovation and safety and maintain an open dialogue with government, both at UK and European level, as well as with international regulatory authorities and key opinion formers.

CTPA recognises that the consumer has a right to understand the processes that industry and the regulatory bodies go through to ensure the safety and efficacy of cosmetic and toiletry products. Over the years we have steadily increased our focus on providing the public with direct access to the industry's perspective and progress on safety, science and innovation.

In April 2008 we launched our consumer information website, www.thefactsabout.co.uk, which provides scientific facts about common ingredients used in cosmetics and the industry's perspective on common safety questions as well as information on how products are regulated to ensure safety and efficacy.

Further information on the work of the CTPA is available from our main website www.ctpa.org.uk which also houses the full set of legislation under 'Cosmetic regulations'.