CVS Health removing coral-damaging compounds from over 50 own-brand sunscreens
Image credit: CVS
Allure
recently reported that CVS Health will be preceding upcoming bans on
sunscreens that contain UV-blocking agents oxybenzone and octinoxate —
ingredients believed to be harmful to coral
reefs —
by removing the chemicals from dozens of its store-brand sunscreens.
The pharmacy chain said in a statement: "By the end of 2020, CVS Health Store
Brand sunscreens under SPF 50 will no longer contain oxybenzone and octinoxate,
which comes ahead of the regulatory scheduled requirements in Hawaii and
Florida to eliminate these ingredients, being put in place to minimize
impact on marine
ecosystems."
While a bill proposing a statewide
ban of the chemicals did not
pass in Florida, the city of Key West approved a local ban that will go into
effect on January 1, 2021, the same day that Hawaii's ban begins.
When asked what precipitated the shift away from the contentious ingredients,
Eileen Howard Boone, CVS’ SVP of Corporate Social Responsibility &
Philanthropy, told Sustainable Brands: “The decision to remove oxybenzone
and octinoxate is part of the latest advancement in CVS’ 2017 commitment to
remove particular
chemicals
from the CVS Health Store Brand beauty and personal care items (including
parabens, phthalates and the most prevalent formaldehyde-releasing
preservatives). While this does come ahead of pending legislation, CVS is highly
attuned to the evolving needs of our customers, and their desire for products
that may be more sustainable while still being efficacious. We wanted to ensure
our customers have access to a wider range of products that deliver quality and
value, while also meeting those particular lifestyle preferences.
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“Customer feedback — as well as our engagement with industry experts and key
advocacy groups — have really driven this move, which we see as a natural step
in the evolution of our comprehensive approach to chemical safety.” — Eileen Howard Boone
Howard Boone went on to clarify that sunscreens with SPFs of 50+ still require
some form of oxybenzone and octinoxate, in order to be the most effective for
customers who require that strength of protection. CVS Health will continue to
carry SPF 50+ sunscreens outside of Hawaii and Florida, but have removed them
from shelves in those markets. She also said CVS will continue to carry other
sunscreen brands containing the banned ingredients, in order to ensure a variety
for customers.
Chemists turning cashew shells into sustainable sunscreen
Image credit: University of the Witwatersrand
Meanwhile, speaking of better alternatives to environmentally damaging sunscreen
ingredients, a team of international scientists has found a win-win way of
producing potential sunscreens — by using cashew shells, a waste material.
The team of chemists from the University of the Witwatersrand in
Johannesburg — with the help of colleagues from universities in Germany,
Malawi and Tanzania — are developing techniques to produce useful
compounds from wood and other fast-growing, non-edible plant waste, through a
chemical process named xylochemistry (wood chemistry). By using cashew nut
shells, the team has produced new aromatic compounds that show good UVA and UVB
absorbance, which may be applied to protect humans and livestock, as well as
polymers or coatings, from harmful sun rays. The research has just been
published as the cover article of the European Journal of Organic
Chemistry.
UV rays are damaging to most materials, with its effects leading to the
discoloration of dyes and pigments, weathering, yellowing of plastics, loss of
gloss and mechanical properties, while it can lead to sunburn, premature aging
and even the development of potentially lethal melanomas in both humans and
animals.
To mitigate UV damage, both organic and inorganic compounds are used as UV
filters. Ideal organic UV filters display a high UV absorption of UVA rays (in
the region ranging from 315-400 nm) and UVB rays (280-315 nm). One important
family of UV absorber molecules are derived from aromatic compounds known as
phenols, which contain a hydrogen-bonded hydroxyl group that plays an important
role in the dissipation of the absorbed energy.
For example, the common yet contentious UV absorbers, oxybenzone and octinoxate,
have also been added to plastics to limit UV degradation. Apart from their
petrochemical origin, a major drawback of these conventional UV-protection
agents is their negative effect on aquatic ecosystems, associated with a poor
biodegradability — hence the pending legislation banning them and growing
consumer demand for alternatives.
"With the current concerns over the use of fossil resources for chemical
synthesis of functional molecules and the effect of current UV absorbers in
sunscreens on the ecosystem, we aimed to find a way to produce new UV absorbers
from cashew nut shell liquid (CNSL) as a non-edible, bio-renewable carbon
resource," says Professor Charles de Koning, of the Wits School of
Chemistry and principal author of the paper; along with Till Opatz from
Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz, Germany. "Cashew nut shells are
a waste product in the cashew-farming community, especially in Tanzania; so,
finding a useful, sustainable way to use these waste products can lead to
completely new, environmentally friendly ways of doing things."
The team has already filed a patent application in order to commercialize the
process in South Africa.
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Sustainable Brands Staff
Published Aug 23, 2019 2pm EDT / 11am PDT / 7pm BST / 8pm CEST