Unilever’s recall applies to products manufactured prior to October 20, 2021. The move raises new concerns about the safety of aerosols in personal-care products.
A number of aerosol sunscreens, including Johnson & Johnson’s Neutrogena, Edgewell Personal Care Co.’s Banana Boat, and Beiersdorf AG’s Coppertone, have been pulled from shelves in the last year and a half, as have spray-on antiperspirants such as Procter & Gamble Co.’s Secret and Old Spice, and Unilever’s Suave.
Beginning in May 2021, the recalls were triggered by the discovery of benzene in such products by Valisure, an analytical lab based in New Haven, Connecticut.
This isn’t the first time a problem with spray-on dry shampoo has been identified. Following Valisure’s findings, P&G tested its entire portfolio of aerosol products. In December, the company recalled its Pantene and Herbal Essences dry shampoos due to benzene contamination.
Beginning in May 2021, the recalls were triggered by the discovery of benzene in such products by Valisure, an analytical lab based in New Haven, Connecticut.
This isn’t the first time a problem with spray-on dry shampoo has been identified. Following Valisure’s findings, P&G tested its entire portfolio of aerosol products. In December, the company recalled its Pantene and Herbal Essences dry shampoos due to benzene contamination.
“Given what we’ve seen, it unfortunately makes sense that other consumer-product categories, such as aerosol dry shampoos, could be heavily impacted by benzene contamination, and we are actively investigating this,” said Valisure CEO David Light.
The propellants used to spray personal-care products from cans appear to be the source of the problem with aerosols. This was the case, according to Unilever, with its dry shampoo recall.
The amount of benzene found in the products was not disclosed, but the company said it was recalling them out of caution.
“Daily exposure to benzene in the recalled products at the levels detected in testing would not be expected to cause adverse health consequences,”according to the FDA.
However, the agency also stated that benzene exposure can cause leukaemia and other blood cancers.
Propellers such as propane and butane, which are petroleum distillates produced by refining crude oil, are commonly found in spray-on personal-care products such as dry shampoos. Benzene is a known petroleum product contaminant.
The FDA has confirmed that propellants can be a source of benzene contamination.
While the FDA has not established benzene limits for cosmetics such as dry shampoo, it does state that the products should not contain “any poisonous or deleterious substance.”
