Leading beauty companies reject MPs’ call for microbead hearing

Some of the UK’s largest beauty brands have refused to answer questions about the environmental effects of plastic microbeads in their products before the parliamentary environmental audit committee. The committee will today hear evidence from cosmetics trade bodies about the polluting impact on the oceans of such microbeads. However, Johnson & Johnson, L’Oreal, Proctor & Gamble, Reckitt Benckiser and Unilever have refused to attend the hearing. A recent poll indicated that two-thirds of the UK public supports a ban on the microbeads, 550m of which are believed to enter UK waters each day. The US has already instituted such a ban. Earlier today London and Whipsnade zoos said that they would cease to stock single use plastic water bottles in an attempt to limit plastic pollution.

The UK’s biggest beauty brands have been accused by an influential MP of showing contempt for their customers by refusing to appear in parliament to answer questions on the impact that their products are having on the oceans.

MPs on the environmental audit committee will hear on Wednesday from the UK and European cosmetics trade bodies on the harm caused by plastic ‘microbeads’ in cosmetics, which are mistaken for food by marine life.

But Proctor & Gamble, Reckitt Benckiser, L’Oreal, Unilever, and Johnson & Johnson refused the committee’s invitation to the hearing, according to EAC chair, Mary Creagh.

“Cosmetic companies need to come clean about the pollution that plastic microbeads are causing. L’Oreal, Proctor & Gamble, Unilever, Reckitt Benckiser and Johnson & Johnson are showing contempt for their customers by refusing to answer questions from MPs about the damage their personal care products are doing to our waters,” the Labour MP said, ahead of the hearing.

“In a democracy, businesses should be responsible, accountable and transparent to their customers; most of whom will be horrified to learn about the damage their face scrubs are doing to the environment.”

The brands will be represented at the hearing by John Chave, director general, Cosmetics Europe and Dr Chris Flower, director general of the Cosmetics, Toiletry and Perfumery Association. Johnson and Johnson, L’Oreal and Unilever said they had submitted written evidence to the committee and would be represented in person by the trade bodies.

In recent years, parliamentary select committees have had high-profile tussles with witnesses who have initially refused to attend to give evidence. Sports Direct boss Mike Ashley who initially declined an invitation to attend the commons business, innovation and skills committee referring to parliamentarians as “a joke”, but subsequently changed his mind and appeared before MPs on Tuesday.

The US has already passed a ban on microbeads in personal care products, and a poll in April found two-thirds of the British public support a ban. The beads are used as an exfoliant in products, but alternatives are available and dozens of brands have already ended the use of microbeads or set a date for their phase out.



Kerry McCarthy, the shadow environment secretary, said 550m microbeads were washed into UK waters every day, and said their use should be banned.

“The Tories have been reluctant to show leadership, preferring to rely on the voluntary action of others. There is no need for microbeads in cosmetics, and no reason to delay. If the government is serious about banning microbeads, we need to see some genuine action now,” she said.

A L’Oreal spokesman said: “L’Oréal is strongly committed to improve its environmental impact and, as we announced in January 2014, will no longer use microbeads of polyethylene in our scrubs by 2017.”

A spokeswoman for Johnson and Johnson said: “In 2013, we became one of the first companies to voluntarily commit to removing polyethylene microbeads from our personal care products globally. Our goal is to remove microbeads from our products globally by the end of 2017.”

Unilever said it had phased out plastic scrub beads by the end of 2014.

A spokeswoman for Reckitt Benckiser said: “RB has very few products that contain polyethylene plastic beads, but we’ve already begun the phase out of these materials. We have stopped developing new products containing plastic beads and are rolling out a global phase-out in 2016 and 2017, which will be complete by the end of 2018.”

Separately on Wednesday, London zoo and Whipsnade, the UK’s biggest zoo, said they would no longer stock single use plastic water bottles, in an effort to reduce plastic pollution.

Kathryn England, head of commercial at the Zoological Society of London, said: “By removing single-use plastic water bottles from our shelves, we’re not only reducing our own impact on the oceans, but opening our visitors’ eyes to the problem and showing them how easy it can be to adopt more sustainable alternatives.”