EWG Verified Program for Cosmetic Products Expands

The Environmental Working Group (EWG), an organization known for its often strong and opposing views of the beauty industry, has announced that the EWG Verified Program now includes 833 personal care and beauty products that carry the EWG mark.

Products that display EWG’s mark range from foundations, blushes, eye shadows, eyeliners, lipsticks, lip glosses, lotions, moisturizers, shampoos and soaps that are free of substances the EWG has deemed “unaccep­table” and meet limits for chemicals on the organiza­tion’s “restricted” list. These ingredients also coincide with those banned or restricted by agencies such as the World Health Organization.

To locate products with the EWG Verified mark consumers can:

1. Look for the mark on packages in the store aisles or online
2. Check the websites of companies for information regarding the EWG Verified Program, if they have been accepted
3. Search EWG's Skin Deep cosmetics database along with the Skin Deep score

Ken Cook, president and co-founder of EWG, was quoted saying, “The EWG Verified mark keeps consumers in the know about what’s really in their products, so they can rest easy knowing that every ingredient meets our rigorous criteria. We make it simple for families to avoid the toxic and potentially harmful chemicals widely used in personal care products.”