Group: Mercury-tainted cosmetics still sold in Metro Manila

Despite a government ban issued last February, mercury-tainted cosmetics continue to be sold in parts of Metro Manila, an ecological group has said. EcoWaste Coalition lamented the business-as-usual attitude of vendors of products such as skin lightening creams, which have been banned for containing high levels of mercury.

“It is obvious from the result of our test buys that the ban on mercury-tainted skin whitening creams is far from being enforced. It’s high time for the government to flex its muscle, conduct stringent monitoring nationwide, and apprehend the culprits. Let us protect unsuspecting consumers from being deceived and harmed by ensuring that only pre-tested mercury-free cosmetics are sold in shops," said Aileen Lucero of EcoWaste's Project Protect. The group said its volunteers bought the outlawed cosmetics from food supplement shops in Monumento in Caloocan City (Grand Central Mall and Victory Mall), Guadalupe, Makati City (Guadalupe Commercial Center and Uni Mec Supermarket), Dagat-dagatan, Malabon City (Malabon Citisquare), Alabang, Muntinlupa City (Starmall) and Cubao, Quezon City (Farmers’ Plaza and Shopwise). Other products were still bought from Chinese medicine stores in Binondo (Ongpin and 168 Mall) and Quiapo (Carriedo), Manila, and in tiangge stalls in Mandaluyong City (Starmall) and Cubao, Quezon City (Farmers’ Plaza). EcoWaste also urged authorities to test skin whitening soaps that have been proliferating in the market for possible mercury contents. “In the meantime, we advise cosmetics consumers to check the product labels carefully, reject products listing mercury or any of its forms as ingredients and refuse those that fail to provide adequate information. Without batting an eyelash, consumers should say no to products that list ingredients in a language that they cannot understand," Lucero said. In test buys by EcoWaste's AlerToxic Patrol August from 6 to 9, volunteers bought six of 11 products that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) banned in June 2010. They also bought two of nine products that the agency banned in February 2010. Among these were:

• Doctor Bai Skin Revitalizing Skin Brightening Cream
• Gemli Glutathione Hydrolyzed Collagen Whitening and Anti-Aging Cream
• Glutathione Grapeseed Extract Whitening and Anti-Aging Cream
• JJJ Magic Spots Removing Cream
• Sheng Li Day and Night Cream
• S’Zitang Cream.

The six were banned under FDA Circular 2010-011. Other banned cosmetic products EcoWaste test-buyers were able to buy were:

• Jiao Li Huichusu Whitening Speckles Removal Cream
• Jiao Li 7-Days Eliminating Freckle AB Set.

The two products were banned under FDA Circular 2010-004. EcoWaste also found that despite pending FDA Case No. NCR-DR/CS-10-266 “for selling and offering for sale banned drug products, unregistered and misbranded cosmetic products," Lam Kang Drugstore in Quiapo was found selling at least three brands of the banned mercury-tainted skin whitening creams (Jiao Li, JJJ and S-Zitang). It noted FDA also filed Case No. NCR-DR-10-334 against Five Star Chinese Drugstore in Manila's Binondo district “for selling and offering for sale unregistered and misbranded cosmetic products." Citing information from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), EcoWaste warned mercury use in cosmetic products can have adverse effects, including skin rashes, discolouring and scarring, and can reduce skin’s resistance to bacterial and mycotic skin disorders. Direct and prolonged exposure through the skin during repeated applications can cause damage to the brain, nervous system and kidneys, it added. EcoWaste asked FDA to:

• Revise the current allowable limit of mercury from 1 part per million (ppm) to zero to ensure that only mercury-free cosmetics are sold in the market;
• Require products to be pre-tested for mercury and other toxic substances before being sold to prove that they are safe for the consumers and the environment;
• Enforce the required labeling requirements under the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, Consumer Protection Act, Food and Drug Administration Act and other pertinent laws;
• Conduct effective public information using all available media that will inform and caution vendors and consumers in both urban and rural areas about the hazards of mercury in cosmetics;
• Establish a hotline where consumers can obtain recall and general product safety information as well as report violation of recall orders; and
• Publish detailed reports to inform the public on how recall orders were implemented.

— LBG, GMANews.TV