Contact: Ralph Pribble, 651-757-2657
St. Paul, Minn. ― Cosmetics containing hazardous levels of mercury that were marketed as skin-lightening preparations to ethnic communities are no longer available at Twin Cities retailers thanks to an investigation by several state and county agencies.
The Minnesota Department of Public Health (MDH) and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) worked jointly with staff from Hennepin and Ramsey counties, the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Minnesota Poison Control System, and representatives from Twin Cities ethnic communities to identify products containing mercury and outlets that sold them, remove the products from distribution channels, and educate consumers about why they’re unsafe and how to properly dispose of them.
“This was a serious public health and pollution issue which the MPCA and our partner agencies moved to address quickly," MPCA Commissioner Paul Aasen said. "Mercury is toxic. Even in small amounts it’s a danger to human health and the environment. The concentration of mercury in some of these products is 165,000 times the federal threshold for hazardous waste."
The drive to identify and remove the hazardous products started in last May, when Ramsey County public health staff, in their preventive health work with ethnic communities, learned that skin creams containing mercury were being sold at retail stores and kiosks in the Twin Cities and obtained samples of some of the products. Because state law prohibits selling cosmetics or toiletries containing more than one part per million (ppm) mercury, the county brought in the MDH and the MPCA.
Through the spring and early summer of 2011, the MPCA and Hennepin County investigated potential distributors of the hazardous products. Stores were inspected and products were screened using a hand-held device that detects mercury vapor. Products found to contain mercury above one ppm were seized. The MDH public health laboratory provided comprehensive chemical analysis of the seized products. Nearly 22 boxes of goods were seized and sampled, and the products found to be banned under state law were destroyed. The FDA also has been able to use the MDH’s analytical data to stop importation of several previously unknown mercury-containing cosmetic products.
In May 2011, the MPCA sent out about 1,350 cease-and-desist letters, and received 105 letters or emails in response. Included in these letters was a list of products know to contain mercury, compiled by Ramsey County Public Health and the MPCA.
The MPCA issued an Administrative Order to Panorama Fashion & Beauty in Minneapolis in May 2011, and a Notice of Violation to CoCo Beauty Supply in Brooklyn Park in January 2012. Those actions now have been formally closed, and MPCA staff have confirmed that all mercury-containing products have been removed from the shelves of those sellers.
“Our investigation removed some major sources of these illegal products," Aasen said. “It's possible that someone may still try to sell them, but they need to know that it's illegal to sell these products and that penalties for the continued sale or distribution will be assessed. We urge all consumers not to buy or use these hazardous products, and to let the MPCA or county health departments know if they see them for sale.”
Along with the health risks of using mercury-containing skin-care products, the task force’s other main concern was that once word got out, consumers who had products at home would simply dispose of them in household trash, increasing the amount of mercury released to the environment. Messages to the public emphasized that consumers should not just avoid buying and using these products, but also ensure that products already purchased are disposed of properly at a household hazardous waste facility.
For more information on why mercury-containing skin products are unsafe, visit the MDH website at www.health.state.mn.us/topics/skin/index.html.
