SACRAMENTO >> Governor Jerry Brown signed the Cleaning Product Right to Know Act of 2017, authored by Senator Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens). The Cleaning Product Right to Know Act makes California the first state to require ingredient labeling both on product labels and online for cleaning products used by millions of consumers and workers.
Unlike retail cosmetics or packaged food, no federal requirements exist for disclosing ingredients in cleaning products,
The Cleaning Product Right to Know Act will require known hazardous chemicals in cleaning products to be listed on both product labels and online. Chemicals found in cleaning products have been shown to cause cancer, birth defects, asthma and other serious health effects, and ingredient labeling responds to consumers’ demand for transparency.
“People around the country and especially Californians are demanding more disclosure about the chemicals in products we use,” said Lara. “The science is clear, and we have seen the data about how cleaning product chemicals affect parents, children, people with pre-existing conditions, and workers who use these products all day, every day. The Cleaning Product Right to Know Act is going to clear the air for shoppers and workers about products they use every day.”
Lara was inspired to bring the legislation by stories from his mother, a former domestic worker.
“After a day of scrubbing toilets my mother would be dizzy and sick, but she never knew if it was the product she was using,” Lara said. “Many of the people who are cleaning our schools, our offices, and our homes are going back to tell their families stories about being sick at work. Senate Bill 258 will help them advocate for safer products.”
Environmental health advocates and industry representatives met for more than six months to reach a compromise that gives consumers and workers ingredient information about known chemicals of concern while ensuring that businesses are able to protect valid proprietary information for other chemicals.
The Cleaning Product Right to Know Act is co-sponsored by public health and environmental health advocates Breast Cancer Prevention Partners, Environmental Working Group, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Women’s Voices for the Earth.
Leading manufacturers of cleaning products also embraced the Cleaning Product Right to Know Act, including California-based Honest Company and WD-40, Seventh Generation, Procter & Gamble, SC Johnson, Reckitt Benckiser, Unilever, Eco Lab, fragrance maker Givaudan, and the Consumer Specialty Products Association, the trade association representing major manufacturers.
‘Breast cancer survivors and others mindful of their cancer risk go out of their way to avoid harmful chemicals,” said Nancy Buermeyer, senior policy strategist at Breast Cancer Prevention Partners. “Now they can make more informed decisions about the cleaning products they use, as can anyone else — a cleaner, a domestic care worker, or a mother with small children — who is looking to reduce their exposures to harmful chemicals and protect their health.”
The Cleaning Product Right to Know Act will require online ingredient listing by January 1, 2020, and on-package disclosure by January 1, 2021, to give manufacturers time to reformulate their products and remove harmful chemicals.
