Right-to-Know:
Our Right to Know What is in Our Consumer Products
The Science is Out There - Its Time Federal Agencies Listened
 Americans have a Right-to-Know about harmful chemicals in our consumer products. We all care about protecting ourselves and our families, but without all the facts about toxins in products, we are often unable to make intelligent, informed choices about which product is least dangerous to our health and best suits our needs.
More and more scientists are finding hazardous chemicals within our everyday products like toys, electronics, building and art supplies, pet food, cleaners, kitchenware, products intended for babies, etc. These same chemicals have also been found inside human bodies. Still - consumers are not being given the information they need to make informed decisions. Today, the only way to find out if your lipstick has lead is to send it to a lab and pay $150. And we've all read about parents scrambling for lead test kits to keep their kids safe from lead exposure in their toys.
While the United States has laws making sure food and drugs are shown to be safe before they're sold, there are tens of thousands of chemicals on the market that affect human health that have never been tested for safety and yet manufacturers are not always required to give a complete list of ingredients on the product's label.
Europe Takes a Stand
In June of 2007, the European Union passed an extremely important piece of legislation called REACH that is now legally binding in all 27 EU member states. REACH gives EU consumers the right to find out what toxins are contained their consumer products by requiring companies to respond to consumer requests. REACH requires governments to test for safety 30,000 chemicals already on the market which had not been tested before. Increasingly, products developed and sold in the United States are equated with serious health hazards, and many of those products are now banned from Europe. For example, lipstick containing lead or butyl benzyl phthalate, found to cause breast cancer, is only available for purchase by American women in the United States and will not be for sale, or allowed for consumption, in the EU.
The United States does not have a system like REACH and as a result, toxic chemicals in the US are used as ingredients in consumer products without adequate testing - and its all perfectly legal according to the United States' only regulation, the Toxic Substances Control Act.
Demand Better
We must demand that new chemicals be subject to the same testing as medicines before entering the market and being added to consumer products. Phase out chemicals linked with a wide range of health problems, from neurological impairment to cancer. Request that your representatives institute a system of regulation that tests new chemicals and proves them safe before they are allowed to be sold. Demand that chemicals already on the market be tested for safety and that any new chemicals are tested before being allowed in our everyday products.
We have a right to know. But right now in America, we are left to wonder. Take action. Call your representatives. Tell them we have a right to know what chemicals are inside our consumer products.
Toxics Release Inventory
Basic Information on the Toxic Release Inventory
TOXMAP/TRI - Frequently Asked Questions
TRI Explorer - Searchable Database
Materials Safety Data Sheets (MSDS)
MSDS - Frequently Asked Questions
MSDS - Main Search Website
Household Products Database
EPA's "Where You Live"
Search Your Community
Scorecard
The Pollution Information Site
According to Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, "Consumers have the right to know what they're exposing themselves and their children to when they use pesticides. We have everything to gain and nothing to lose by requiring these toxic substances to appear on product labels."
NY State Attorney General agrees:
Press Release of New York State Attorney General Elliot Spitzer
RTK Resources and Links
Report from the US Government Accountability Office:
EPA Actions Could Reduce Environmental Information Available to Many Communities
Excellent resource on pesticides and alternatives:
Beyond Pesticides
Working Group on Community Right to Know:
Our Right-to-Know -- Pesticide Product Labels
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