Microplastics in Cosmetics as Microbeads

What are Microbeads

Microbeads are solid plastic particles intentionally added to rinse-off personal care products for exfoliation or cleansing purposes. They have a diameter of 5 mm or less and are insoluble in water.

The increased awareness on the environmental risks raised by the presence of intentionally and non-intentionally added microplastics in personal care and cosmetics encouraged both companies and countries to implement stricter measures against microbeads. To date, 448 brands from 119 different manufactures have promised to phase out microbeads from their product range.

Cosmetics & Ecolabel

Under the European Union Ecolabel, all rinse-off products shall not contain microbeads.

To qualify for the EU Ecolabel, products must comply with a set of criteria. These environmental criteria consider the whole product life cycle. Their source was a panel of experts from several stakeholders, including consumer organizations and industry.

What can we do?

The wide range of different plastic types available on today’s consumer makes the qualitative or quantitative analysis of microplastics extremely challenging and there are currently no officially recognized methods available.

Mérieux NutriSciences’ laboratories have developed and validate specific methods for many matrix types including detergents, cosmetics, drinking water, milk, beverages, mineral salts, fish product and environmental matrices.