Soapbox

Nah, this post isn't actually about soap. It's just me, ranting about the state of things that I don't know what's in the products I use in my home and on my body, and that finding products that aren't totally synthetic or toxic requires nearly as much freaking investigation as an episode of Law & Order.

I decided to sift through the list of companies that have signed the Compact for Safer Cosmetics and have achieved 'champion' status by meeting criteria set in the compact. Check it here. This list is the culmination of a seven-year effort to get cosmetic companies to commit to manufacturing safer products. Bravo to all the champions and their commitment to not slowly poison their customers.

I recognized just one brand on the list: Queen Helene. Among hundreds -- hundreds! -- of companies, Queen Helene is the only brand to make the grade that's sold by major retailers. Maybe it's a regional thing, like some of the other companies are big in their geographic areas, so maybe I'm just not recognizing brands that aren't from my part of the country. Maybe.

Or more likely it's a demographic thing. Hear me out. You know how grocery stores are laid out so that the cheapest, gross-for-you foods are in the center of the store and the higher-margin, healthier items are around the perimeter? It's a subtle thing, the message that healthy food is only for those who can afford it. I'm beginning to think health and beauty products are a bit similar. I mean, why else would big national retailers (I'm looking at you, Target) stock only national brands that have no interest in an initiative like the Campaign for Safer Cosmetics? Why are the brands that ARE participating only available at upscale stores like Whole Foods or obscure, hard-to-find independent retailers? Sure, everything's on Amazon, but is that any better? 

The consumers who want better products enough to seek them out are a self-selecting group, more likely with the means (financial, intellectual, technological) to research what they buy, find it and lay down the extra cash than the average Target or Wal-Mart shopper. So if you frequent big box stores, you're stuck having to buy products that are full of toxic crap?

Conspiracy theory? Perhaps. Bullsh*t? Definitely.

Where is the consumer protection here? Where is the awareness, the advocacy, the accountability? It's time to wake up, folks. Time to get pissed off. I know I am.

-- Jazzy