Things I Like! -

29 Apr 2012

Cosmetics • Diet & Nutrition • Eat Local

CT Vegetarian Festival Review

The First Annual Connecticut Vegetarian and Healthy Living Festival took place yesterday and today, at the Connecticut Convention Center. I find it hard to believe this was a first time event – it was SO well organized!

There was no fee to enter the Festival, but a donation of canned food was requested. There was a lot of free information as well as opportunities to purchase products – but the “tone” seemed to be focused on informing rather than heavy handed marketing.

I tend to make a beeline for the booths with cosmetics and soap, since that is an area I am more familiar with than the Vegan/Vegetarian topics – but I was thrilled to have a chance to get more information about Vegetarian products, too. I am not Vegan, but I am a semi-vegetarian – I eat seafood, eggs, and some dairy. The “i am not a swimming vegetable (eating fish is NOT vegetarian)” sticker is cute – I’m just not ready to give up certain things even after reading the life changing book, “Eating Animals”.

I picked up a lot of information, some coupons, and found some great new product lines!

My favorite soap/cosmetic company was Fanciful Fox. I made sure they did not use any synthetic fragrances – even though it was pretty easy for me to tell based on the fact that their booth smelled so beautiful. The packaging is adorable, and the ingredients met my high standards AND were properly labeled (INCI ingredients). I am looking forward to taking a nice relaxing Foxy Detoxy bath with my new bath fizzy tonight! www.fancifulfox.com

My favorite totally new snack was Cinnamon Maple Roasted Chickpeas by new company, BIENA. They were really tasty! This company is not in Connecticut yet – they are only 8 weeks old! I think this is a product that will REALLY take off! www.bienafoods.com

My husband and I also really liked the locally made Pan De Oro brand tortilla chips made with organic corn! www.pandeoro.com

I got home and immediately found the Facebook page and website for the CT Veg Fest www.ctvegfest.org - I was really impressed with the amount of information on the website – I am saving it so I can go back and visit the websites for the vendors I missed! The site has links to the vendors, recipes and more. Next year, I plan to spend more time at the Festival and make sure I attend the presentations and not just visit the vendors – I am sure I missed a lot of great stuff.

The highlight of my afternoon was meeting a local representative of Neal’s Yard Remedies (known as NYR organic in the USA). I have been critical of this company in the past and was pretty confrontational when I first visited this booth. What a pleasure to meet someone who was willing to hear my concerns, and invite me to send her more information about the ingredients I questioned. I am really excited about the opportunity to have these issues addressed instead of excused – or worse dismissed.

There were very few disappointments among the vendors at the Festival, which I will outline but not “name names”: a soap/cosmetic company using synthetic fragrances – even phthalate-free synthetic fragrances are a health hazard and they have no place in a Healthy Living Festival; one cosmetic company told me they were ‘certified organic’ but had no idea what I was talking about when I asked “by whom” (Certified Organic products have to be Certified by a 3rd party Agent of the USDA NOP); one line of cosmetics referred to their products as “chemical-free” which someone must have asked them about, because I overheard the owner explaining that ‘yes, technically even water is a chemical but we mean man-made chemicals’, they also did not have the ingredients listed in FDA required INCI language but did agree to look into that issue; and the biggest issue for us – almost every sample was handed out in a little plastic cup. There was simply way, way too much disposable plastic in use at an event about healthy living.

SueLikes | 5 comments | Tags: Connecticut Vegetarian and Healthy Living Festival

17 Apr 2012

farms • organic claims • USDA Certified Organic

USDA Certified Organic Farms

Spring is here and if you are like me, you are looking forward to shopping for organic fruits, vegetables and other products like soap and skincare at Farmers Markets and local farm stands.

So how do you tell if a product is really Certified Organic? Let’s face it…the rubber band is not exactly all the information most of us want!

As of the end of 2011, 17,673 organic farms and processing facilities in the United States were certified to the USDA organic standards. As I mentioned in March, the updated list of certified organic operations is now available from the USDA!

This database is a good starting place to check and see if the operation (farm/processor/handler) you are buying from is Certified Organic. It is not updated often though, so once you determine the Approved Certifying Agent from this database, the Agent is the ultimate source of current Certification Status.

Unfortunately, some businesses – even farms – are not truthful about their certification status. That is one of the reasons people like me, who host web sites, need to be especially careful when recommending a company and attesting to their status as Certified Organic.

As per section §205.100 of the OFPA, all operations making the claim of “organic” must be certified according to the provisions of subpart E of the OFPA and must meet all other applicable requirements. This certification is to be performed with an accredited USDA/NOP certification agency or accredited State certification agency. Any fraudulent claims or statements made without adherence to the OFPA are subject to civil penalties within section §205.100(c)(1) of the OFPA as well as civil and criminal penalties located within 18 US Code section 1001.

(The fines would apply based on where the information stemmed from: if the farms were unaware they were being marketed as Certified Organic, then the fault lies with the website marketing them as Organic. If the website marketing this third party can produce proof that they were misinformed by the farm itself, then the fault would lie with the farm making the false claim. Whomever is in the wrong here, is in danger of being fined.)

One local New England website, Working The Land, came to my attention because they list a number of farms and operations as certified organic through Baystate Organic Certifiers, under the Organic Foods Product Act, Title 7, Part 205. Some of the farms on the website are indeed certified and in good standing, however many have either never been certified or have dropped their certification.

False claims of Certified Organic status is unfair to those who work very hard to adhere to the organic regulations and who pay for the privilege of selling their products as Certified Organic.

Another important issue to address: the website uses terminology such as the description “non certified organic farm.” This is an illegal term in that the organic status of a farm or operation is subject to federal oversight in the United States, and all aspects of a “certified organic farm” must be compliant with the Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA). There is no such thing as a “non certified organic farm.”

I decided to check with the farm listed in my town of Glastonbury. I called up George Purtill, owner of Old Maids Farm, LLC. I had noticed while driving by the farm, that a sign with the USDA Organic seal was no longer on display. Local shoppers, who may not know George personally, probably saw his “life sized” photo in banners promoting locally grown, Certified Organic produce, when Whole Foods first opened here in town.

George was surprised to learn his farm was listed on the Working the Land website. He was very clear; his farm is no longer operating or marketing itself as Certified Organic. He still grows organically, but decided not to renew his certification because he is not selling retail any more. George said he gets phone calls all the time from folks trying to sign up for his CSA program (Community Supported Agriculture) – Old Maids Farm hasn’t sold CSA shares in two years! (The website the Working the Land site links to, is an old Yahoo site scheduled to expire shortly.)

“The best place for customers to check and confirm that the farm really is USDA Certified Organic, is on the official website; farmers have no control over what other people say about them.” said George.

So look for the USDA Certified Organic seal AND the name of the Approved Certifying Agent on the products you buy…and if you have any doubt, visit the USDA Database, then check with the Certifying Agent listed!

SueLikes | 4 comments | Tags: USDA Certified Organic Farms

31 Mar 2012

Allergens • Ava Anderson Non Toxic

Dear Kim Anderson,

This is the last time I will be publically writing to or about Kim Sprague Anderson or her company, Ava Anderson “Non Toxic”.

I just wanted post one last link http://www.greenwala.com/profiles/danika-carter-your-organic-life/blog/20058-Ingredient-Spotlight-Talc

“Ava Anderson also claims not to use talc, but lists magnesium silicate in their ingredients. I brought this to the attention of Kim Anderson about a year ago and she said their next batch would take it out, but apparently they’ve decided to leave it in.”

So any time an ingredient, whether it is menthol crystals, spearmint leaf oil, (both of which are fine ingredients but they do not fit with the company claims that everything in their cosmetics is “ZERO” in skin deep) or known hazards like talc and now almond oil in a baby product – are brought to Ava and Kim’s attention, they claim ‘next time we make a product run we’ll be removing this ingredient’ but it NEVER HAPPENS!

Have you ever seen any kind of notice that a product was reformulated or if so, why? Of course not. That would mean admitting they had made a mistake.

They think the FDA doesn’t “get it”? Well maybe they don’t…I know I will keep filing complaints with the FDA until the company gets exactly what they want for their competition – an FDA investigation into their manufacturing practices, and the safety of their products!

Ava and Kim Anderson claim over and over that no cosmetic ingredients are ever tested for safety – well they swim in that pool! So demand that Ava Anderson Non Toxic make public the safety testing they have done on THEIR ingredients and THEIR finished products!

They claim to be “the only” nontoxic cosmetics company – PROVE IT! Where are the scientific tests? Where have they made this PUBLIC INFORMATION?

Ava Anderson Non Toxic isn’t nontoxic until they remove phototoxic ingredients from their leave-on cosmetics.

Ava Anderson Non Toxic isn’t nontoxic until they replace their BENZENE forming preservative.

Ava Anderson Non Toxic isn’t nontoxic until they recall their illegal hand sanitizer and warn customers that it actually is NOT more effective than the FDA approved alcohol products, and in fact they have risked potentially lethal bacterial infections by using the Ava product instead of an FDA approved formula.

Ava Anderson Non Toxic isn’t nontoxic until they recall their potentially hazardous baby products made with nut allergins and in factories containing nuts. These product could KILL a child and put every baby at risk for developing nut allergies. Diaper rash is temporary – nut allergies are forever.

Ava Anderson Non Toxic isn’t nontoxic until they reformulate and properly label their perfumes or drop the product line completely.

These issues are not something where 20 years down the road someone might develop cancer if everything falls into place the wrong way.

These are issues where someone with MRSA could use this hand sanitizer instead of an FDA approved formula, and pass along a fatal infection.

These are issues where someone with a baby with a nut allergy could use this product and their baby could die.

These are issues where someone with asthma triggered by one of the 26 fragrance allergens could die of an asthma attack.

Ava Anderson Non Toxic isn’t honest until they either get their products CERTIFIED organic or stop claiming they are “made with organic ingredients”.

And last…Ava Anderson Non Toxic needs to comply with what the Campaign for Safe Cosmetic tells consumers they already do as a GOLD STANDARD “Champion”…but don’t!

In order to get the gold standard status of Champion, companies had to fulfill all tenets of the Compact, which include:

• Comply with the European Union’s Cosmetics Directive, widely considered the current global gold standard of cosmetics safety regulation.

FAIL! The EU Cosmetic Directives require all cosmetics have pre-market approval. I don’t think many Champions can claim they comply with this requirement, can they?

Ava Anderson Non Toxic cosmetics fail to list all ingredients in INCI language AND fail to list the mandatory 26 allergens…also a requirement of the EU laws.

• Disclose all ingredients, including ingredients in “fragrance,” which in the United States can be claimed as “trade secrets,” even when they contain hormone disruptors, carcinogens and other harmful chemicals.

FAIL! NONE of Ava Anderson Non Toxic perfumes list the ingredients in the fragrances, nor do they list the carrier oils, none of the ingredients are listed in INCI language, nor do they list any allergens as required.

• Publish and regularly update product information in EWG’s Skin Deep cosmetics database.

FAIL! This company is in their third year and none but the original seven products are even listed in Skin Deep, much less updated.

It is well past time Ava Anderson Non Toxic stopped claiming to be the only nontoxic cosmetic company, or even the best cosmetic company.

It is time as a women owned company they pay respect to the many, many women who came before them – who spent their time formulating products in their kitchens and growing their actual, natural, safe, non-toxic cosmetic companies with hard work, attention to detail, truth in labeling, and by honoring the traditions of the mothers, herbalists, gardeners, and healers that came before them.

I believe Ava Anderson Non Toxic was started with pure and good intentions and somehow went in the wrong direction, one where hiding mistakes instead of learning from them became the mantra. Where photo opportunities replaced learning opportunities.

Time will tell where they end up…a brief notation on a girls college application or a company anyone would take pride in representing.

I have not given up on you Kim…I know somewhere deep inside is a Mom who honestly cares more about where this company is going than the past is demonstrating.

Nothing, nothing in my life is more important to me than my children and I know from my heart of hearts we want to protect them from harm and criticism, but I also know they often learn more from an honest critique than from simple praise. I want my children to have professors and employers who will tell them when they are wrong and how they can learn from their mistakes and change direction.

LEARN from your mistakes, please. You can do better.

SueLikes | 10 comments | Tags: Ava Anderson Non Toxic, Kim Sprague Anderson

30 Mar 2012

Allergens • Cosmetics • Diet & Nutrition • Unsafe Cosmetics

Allergy Legal Expert WARNING about Ava Anderson Cosmetics

Many of the Ava Anderson products contain shea, which is a tree nut. Many products also contain sweet almond oil, which should not be rubbed on your skin if you’re allergic to tree nuts. More information regarding anaphylaxis from substances rubbed on the skin was released recently, which bolsters my position that if you’re allergic to a substance, you should not rub its oil on your skin or consume it any other way. In this product line, I also found a fair number of food ingredients that are less common allergens.

http://blog.onespotallergy.com/2012/03/ava-anderson-products-allergen-alert/

Onespot^TM Allergy Blog is written by Elizabeth Goldenberg, Canada’s Allergy Legal Expert & Brand Advocate. She’s a Canadian lawyer and mother to two sons, one of whom has a life-threatening allergy to peanuts and tree nuts.

SueLikes | No comments | Tags: Allergens, Dangerous Cosmetics

28 Mar 2012

Facebook • NonToxic • Unsafe Cosmetics

Ava Anderson fails to RECALL potentially life threatening baby product!

From Facebook:

I spoke with one of your representatives and I asked specifically about nuts and nut products, and I was told that all your products were nut free, and made in nut free processing faciliti…es. I specifically asked about sweet almond oil, since this is common in cosmetics (in fact, I used to use only sweet almond and coconut oil on my skin). I decided to check out your products in greater detail before buying anything, and I was shocked when I found the ingredient list on your website. One of the ingredients in your BABY massage and body oil is SWEET ALMOND OIL. It is also in several of your other products, and there is no nut allergy warning on the label. This could have caused a FATAL allergic reaction. When I confronted your consultant I was told that all your products rate a 0 on the EWG (which I already knew) and therefore they were perfectly safe for everyone. She treated me like I was wrong, told me that sweet almond oil was fine to use on babies with nut allergies, and that I was being overly picky and would never find a better product.

President of Ava Anderson Non Toxic, Kim Anderson’s reaction – she blamed the “independent consultant” for not knowing better! Then she said they would be replacing the almond oil in the next run in a few weeks. A FEW WEEKS! No recalls – no warning parents or posting a warning on Facebook or their websites or those of their consultants.

DEAD BABIES vs. Looking Bad…let’s just take the chance that no one dies…who cares…they should be reading the labels anyway!!

I would ask anyone reading to go to Ava’s Facebook page and tell her and her Mom, Kim, reformulating weeks from now is NOT GOOD ENOUGH! But I know these posts would be deleted moments after they appeared, and the person posting banned. It happens any time anyone questions them about claims they make or their actual ingredients. But you could try – here is the address: http://www.facebook.com/lists/10150277719525964#!/pages/Ava-Anderson-Non-Toxic/130519185981

Here is a link to an article I wrote right after this new product line was launched:

http://www.greenwala.com/channels/eco-beauty/blog/20150-Almond-Oil-in-Baby-Products-is-DANGEROUS

SueLikes | 6 comments | Tags: Ava Anderson Non Toxic sells life threatening baby products

26 Mar 2012

Cosmetics • Environmental Issues • Household Cleaners • NonToxic

NonToxic…maybe not!

“It’s not just that finding out their favorite non-toxic product actually contains potentially harmful chemicals is likely to make consumers angry, but also that manufacturers could feasibly be putting themselves at risk of legal action for being in violation of the Federal Trade Commission’s green guides. Those guides state:

Section 5 of the FTC Act makes unlawful deceptive acts and practices in or affecting commerce. The Commission’s criteria for determining whether an express or implied claim has been made are enunciated in the Commission’s Policy Statement on Deception. In addition, any party making an express or implied claim that presents an objective assertion about the environmental attribute of a product, package or service must, at the time the claim is made, possess and rely upon a reasonable basis substantiating the claim. A reasonable basis consists of competent and reliable evidence. In the context of environmental marketing claims, such substantiation will often require competent and reliable scientific evidence, defined as tests, analyses, research, studies or other evidence based on the expertise of professionals in the relevant area, conducted and evaluated in an objective manner by persons qualified to do so, using procedures generally accepted in the profession to yield accurate and reliable results.”

http://www.forbes.com/sites/amywestervelt/2012/03/08/study-highlights-hidden-dangers-in-everyday-products/

So…when you consider buying products from a cosmetics company with the word “NonToxic” in their name…don’t fall for quotes from Google searches to substantiate their claims. Ask them for reliable scientific evidence for statements such as “the only nontoxic cosmetics company” for example! Because otherwise, it’s just marketing…and illegal marketing at that!

SueLikes | 2 comments | Tags: cleaners, consumer awareness, Cosmetics, NonToxic

23 Mar 2012

Clean Air • Environmental Issues

Asthma…thank you NRDC

What Would Happen if all the Lobbyists for Polluters were Replaced by Asthmatic Children?

SueLikes | No comments | Tags: Asthma, NRDC.org

21 Mar 2012

Blogging • Cosmetics • FDA reporting

I’m a CT Working Mom

So it’s natural for me to follow the BLOG CT Working Moms

There are many posts there that I disagree with, but also many that I applaud! But one of the things I like best is that they allow comments to appear unmoderated. The author does not have to agree with me but they still allow my comments to remain. THAT is the sign of a classy organization.

Sometimes my posts or comments in the area of cosmetics makes it seem like I am a big fan of the FDA. I have to try to find a way of expressing myself that doesn’t lead to that conclusion, if I can. When someone, like the company I wrote about before, says “the FDA does not regulate cosmetics” and I correct them and say “YES, the FDA does regulate cosmetics” – some readers have told me that seems like I am defending the job the FDA does. I’m not.

We have fire departments and police departments in our towns, even though hopefully we’ll never need to use either one in an emergency. I don’t expect the fire department to come into my home and check the batteries in my smoke alarms, or ring my doorbell to make sure I have a carbon monoxide detector. I have to take that responsibility personally. If I go to the shopping center and leave my purse on my car seat and leave the car doors unlocked, and my purse is stolen – I don’t blame the police for not being better at fighting crime.

I don’t think the FDA does a great job but I am realistic that with the resources they have available, they are probably doing the best they can. People die every day from pharmaceutical drugs and contaminated foods. Realistically, I want the FDA to focus on drug safety and food safety before cosmetic safety. Part of the reason our family tries never to use pharmaceutical drugs is because we don’t believe what the drug companies claim is the truth and the risk often outweighs the benefits. I’d rather see the FDA come up with new regulations for things like GMOs in food and address critical issues such as the hazards of high fructose corn syrup, than worry about most issues related to cosmetics.

That does not mean I am blind to the risks – but I address what I consider a risk by doing my own research, reaching my own conclusions, and shopping accordingly. Lead in lipstick is not a risk when you consider that I probably eat and drink far more lead at every meal than if I ate a tube of lipstick a day. There are far more serious issues to spend time worrying about. Should the FDA set limits for lead in lipstick? Sure…why not. This should not be a challenge – just adopt the limits from Europe…or even California. Most current lipsticks would easily fall within that range…everybody happy.

SueLikes | 2 comments | Tags: Blogging, Connecticut, Working Mom

20 Mar 2012

Green • Household Cleaners • Natural

Rodale Green Cleaning Recipes!

“Never waste your money on “antibacterial” cleaners and soaps whose active ingredients have been linked to thyroid damage, water pollution, and the emergence of drug-resistant superbugs like MRSA. Instead, kill germs with this all-purpose vinegar solution. It’ll only cost you about 20 cents!”