Walmart asks suppliers to remove 8 chemicals from products
BENTONVILLE, Ark. -- Walmart has asked suppliers to remove "high priority chemicals," such as formaldehyde and triclosan, from their products as part of an effort to eliminate controversial chemicals from household goods.
The chemicals on the list include “certain properties that can affect human health or the environment,” Walmart said in a statement issued Wednesday.
"Our goal is to reduce, restrict and eliminate the use of HPCs by using informed substitution principles. We have been asking our suppliers to reformulate their products to meet our expectations. When suppliers are unable to remove HPCs, we ask them to develop time-bound action plans to reduce, restrict and eliminate usage as well as to engage in broad stakeholder initiatives to work toward industry-wide solutions. To date, we have successfully removed 95 percent of HPCs by volume weight from the products we sell in Walmart U.S. that are in the scope of our policy."
The eight chemicals include:
Formaldehyde — Used in building materials in composites, some household products like paint and glue, fertilizers and pesticides, and as a preservative in some medicines and cosmetics.
Triclosan — An antibacterial agent found in toothpastes, detergents and surgical cleaning treatments.
Toluene — Used in paint thinners, nail polish and fragrances.
Diethyl phthalate — A synthetic substances typically used to make plastic more flexible and often found in food packaging, toys and toothbrushes.
Dibutyl phthalate — A common plasticizer that began being phased out of nail polishes in 2006.
Nonylphenol exthoxylates — Surfactants found in industrial cleaning products, paints and laundry detergent.
Butylparabens and propylparaben — Preservatives found in a wide variety of personal care products and foods.
The world's biggest retailer said its sustainable chemistry policy helps customers learn what’s in personal care and household products such as baby lotion, cleaners and pet shampoo.
In 2015, Walmart said, it started listing those ingredients on Walmart.com for private brands. The company also asked national brand suppliers like Procter & Gamble and Revlon to list product ingredients on their own websites, giving access to this information in multiple locations, so customers can make more informed choices.
This year, the company says it has engaged 76% of suppliers queried through its Sustainability Index to report on their online ingredient disclosure practices. Of those, 78% reported that they disclose ingredients online for all their products according to a nationally recognized standard.
Walmart committed in 2013 to increase transparency about ingredients in products it sells, advance safer formulations and attain the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Safer Choice certification for Walmart private brand products.