World Green Organisation is launching Hong Kong’s first ever “White List” of baby products that has higher and safer standards
Press photos: https://goo.gl/jA6s4H
(Hong Kong, November 20th) According to the USEPA, there were at least 87,000 chemicals that were being used worldwide for commercial purposes. However, only a small percentage of these chemicals’ toxicity is fully known. This is mainly due to the lengthy timeframe and expensive process of testing the toxicity of individual chemicals. As a result, governments worldwide can only use the limited number of chemical toxicity research results to set safety regulations for commercial products.
To save guard the consumer interests, World Green Organisation (WGO) has developed a three-defence methodology with three renowned laboratories in order to achieve higher safety standards for baby products. Based on this methodology that meets current (1) chemical analysis and (2) international ingredient standards, as well as (3) biological testing, WGO is creating a ‘White List’ of baby food and personal care products for consumers. For more information, please visit http://wgo.org.hk/whitelist/en/lotion.php
This is a 3-year project that will cover different product categories, beginning with baby lotion. New findings will be announced 4 times a year. The objective of this project is to educate consumers on most up-to-date product safety standards and incentivise manufacturers, suppliers, and retailers to pursue higher standards. Please refer to Appendix I for part 1 of the ‘White List’.
The three-defence methodology are used as follows. First, samples of baby lotion were collected from 7 major popular retailers in Hong Kong based on WGO’s public survey to Hong Kong parents on baby products. Collected samples go through chemical analysis which measures the quantity of specific chemicals (for example, heavy metals, methanol, and free formaldehyde) within each product. The products that pass this test then go through an international ingredient check which uses government regulations from the European Union, United States, China, and Japan. Products that meet all of those standards are then tested using an effect-based biological method. The biological testing measures the level of Estrogen Equivalent (EEQ) concentration in each product. Measuring EEQ is important as increased levels of EEQ can affect the human’s endocrine system and disrupt key functions of hormones. The biological tests help quantify the amount of estrogen in each product. In order to pass this test, the levels cannot surpass the acceptable levels according to the World Health Organisation. Only products that pass this methodology will go on the White List. For more information about the methodology, please refer to Appendix II.
Survey results show that over 60% of respondents do not know what ingredients are in their baby products.
WGO conducted questionnaires with over 200 Hong Kong parents with children under the age of 3 to identify knowledge and awareness gaps. Over 80% of respondents indicated that they worry about the safety of the baby personal care products that they purchase. However, only 22% of respondents always read the ingredients label. 61% were not sure what harmful ingredients could be found and 53% did not know the consequences of estrogenic chemicals (estrogenic chemicals increase levels of EEQ in the body) in baby personal care products. This shows that although most parents are concerned about product safety, they are not aware of the potential health risks and do not know what to be wary of.
WGO also asked 37 Hong Kong parents with children under the age of 3 to identify the impact of this ‘White List’. Almost 100% of respondents stated that they would refer to the list when purchasing new baby personal care products. 76% of respondents answered that they will not buy products that are not on the ‘White List’. This small sample confirms the importance of this study and the ‘White List’.
According to Dr. Yu, Chief Executive Officer of WGO, “Our survey results indicated that Hong Kong parents’ awareness of product safety standards are insufficient. The White List aims to empower them to make more informed decisions. We understand that, in general, all existing baby products comply with government safety regulations. However, this higher standard will incentivise manufactures to only produce products that will not harm the human body and pollute the environment”.
Appendix I: Baby Lotion “White List” and Appendix II: Methodology
Baby Product Safety Report – Baby Lotion
Website: http://wgo.org.hk/whitelist/en/
Disclaimer: http://wgo.org.hk/whitelist/en/t&c.pdf