News

Green Seal Prohibits PFAS in Cleaning Products

Green Seal last week announced a prohibition on any per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in all Green Seal-certified cleaning and personal care products. This announcement verifies the dedication Green Seal has when addressing these harmful “forever chemicals.” The Green Seal PFAS Initiative has been in the works since last year and is now finally approved. Products certified to Green Seal’s updated standards will be verified to be PFAS-free and to meet one of the highest benchmarks for safety and environmental protection in the marketplace.

The company has long prohibited the use of long-chain PFAS, but a growing body of evidence indicates that short-chain PFAS have the same harmful health and environmental effects as the legacy PFAS they are replacing. Green Seal’s updated cleaning and personal care product standards now prohibit all approximately 12,000 chemicals in this class.

“Purchasers and manufacturers know the hazards of this class of toxic chemicals but lack reliable ways to ensure products are PFAS-free,” said Doug Gatlin, CEO of Green Seal. “Green Seal’s standard criteria now eliminate PFAS throughout the product formula supply chain for certified cleaning and personal care products while maintaining performance requirements, so buyers can choose safer, healthier, and effective products with confidence.”

PFAS are persistent in the environment, with evidence that some chemicals are so resistant to degradation that they could persist for hundreds of years. The chemicals are now found in drinking water and bioaccumulate in both soil and humans. PFAS are associated with numerous adverse health effects, including impacts on the endocrine and reproductive systems; increased risks of certain cancers such as prostate, testicular, and kidney; and decreased immune responses — including our body’s ability to develop beneficial antibodies in response to vaccines.

It can be challenging for consumers and even manufacturers to be certain that products do not use PFAS. For example, PFAS frequently are used in raw materials – and those proprietary formulas often are not fully disclosed to the final product manufacturer. With the new prohibition, Green Seal can provide assurance to both manufacturers and buyers that their Green Seal-certified cleaning and personal care products are PFAS-free.

Learn more about Green Seal’s initiative.