When grocery shopping, many of us check the labels of the foods we’re buying to evaluate ingredients and nutritional information. But what about the many products we buy that contain chemicals we’re unfamiliar with – or that don’t come with labels at all?
The Union of Concerned Scientists has teamed up with the Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families coalition on a campaign called “Mind the Store.” They are asking the nation’s largest retailers to refrain from selling products that contain any of the Hazardous 100+ chemicals.
The Hazardous 100+ is a list of chemicals that are thought to cause health problems such as cancer, infertility, asthma, and developmental disabilities.
The “Mind the Store” campaign acknowledges that retailers face some of the same challenges as consumers when it comes to obtaining accurate information about chemicals. But it hopes to persuade these companies to take action to ensure that the products they’re selling are safe.
The campaign hopes to harness the power of consumers to demand change from corporations. It’s a strategy that has worked well in the past, as when many manufacturers began making BPA-free bottles in response to consumer concerns before federal regulations existed.
Since inception, the “Mind the Store” campaign has had some success. In response to a 40,000-person petition, Target and Walmart both agreed to take the 10 most dangerous chemicals out of their cosmetics, baby products, cleaning supplies, and personal care items.
Of course, the coalition hopes to go further, and to reach all of the nation’s top retailers with its message.
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Web Links
Mind the Store
http://mindthestore.saferchemicals.org/why_mind_the_store
Photo, taken on July 23, 2008, courtesy of Kevin Dooley via Flickr.
Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio. Support for Earth Wise comes from the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, NY.