Green Seal, Inc., a non-profit organization founded in 1989 to safeguard health and the environment, and recognized as the original “green seal of approval,” is introducing a standard for certification of personal care and cosmetic products, GS-50.The new standard is the first in the personal care and cosmetics category in the U.S. to cover the whole product life-cycle. It establishes environmental, health, and performance requirements for products intended to be left on the body and hair including, but are not limited to, lotions, hair spray and styling products, sunscreen, nail polish, insect repellant, makeup, antiperspirant and deodorant.
This standard, along with the Green Seal standard for Soaps and Shower Products (GS-44), provides tools that manufacturers can freely download and
use to improve their products, and to validate those improvements through certification. And the standards provide a guide for consumers to know that their favorite products are safer, greener, and perform as well as they should.
While there are many products in the personal care market that feature environmental claims about ingredients, GS-50 covers much more. To achieve certification, manufacturers need to satisfy performance, health and environmental, social responsibility, packaging and labeling requirements, as well as providing definitions for common claims such as “natural”, “organic” and “bio based”.
“The Personal Care and Cosmetics category has been the focus of much consumer concern in relation to the environmental and health impacts of ingredients and manufacturing processes used,” says Dr. Arthur Weissman, President & CEO of Green Seal. “It was imperative then that Green Seal develop standards that address these concerns and make it possible for consumers to identify those products that have been independently certified to have less impact.”
Certification allows manufacturers to feature the Green Seal – an eco-label that that assures a product is safer for health and the environment, awarded by an independent third party. The upcoming release of the new FTC Green Guides for Environmental Marketing Claims will likely result in more scrutiny of claims made on products and how the claims are substantiated. As information about the basis of the claims becomes more transparent, Independent verification will be key.
Standards can be downloaded and applications for certification can be made online at www.greenseal.org. The evaluation process includes review of data; assessment of labeling, marketing and promotional materials; and an on-site audit of manufacturing facilities. Annual monitoring is also conducted for those awarded the Green Seal to ensure continued compliance.
Source: Green Seal