Kemi urges Sweden to update cosmetics legislation

Chemicals Agency Kemi has submitted a report urging the Swedish Government to update its list of permitted substances in national cosmetics legislation.

The agency seeks to review the list to ensure the safety of cosmetic products.

Preservatives are added to personal care products including shampoo, soap, moisturiser, and lotions to prevent contamination of the products by bacteria. However, chlorinated preservatives are reported to be bioaccumulative, toxic, and pose a threat to the environment and aquatic organisms if they bypass water treatment plants.

Currently, only health effects of preservatives are considered as a criteria for cosmetics legislation lists, while environmental problems are regulated by EU chemical regulation REACH. Kemi proposes the Swedish Government's national regulations are not enough and seeks restrictions at the EU level.

Swedish Chemicals Agency investigator Anna Lindberg said: “EU processes concerning the preservatives we assess to be particularly problematic are already in motion. There are probably other, larger sources for the dispersion of these substances as well.

“Therefore, the most effective approach is to work for limitations to be imposed through the EU’s REACH legislation, which regulates chemical substances.”

The agency wants the EU cosmetics legislation to be reviewed based on any new findings and updated accordingly.

Kemi evaluated 19 preservatives used in cosmetic products such as triclosan. Of the total substances investigated, seven were found to have a potential to cause allergies.

In its report, the agency proposes various actions to prevent use of select preservatives from increasing and support firms seeking to replace unsafe preservatives.

Kemi wishes to collaborately develop criteria for the public procurement of cosmetics and use environmental monitoring to measure the substances’ incidence.