CVS Caremark gets tough on cosmetics

SAN FRANCISCO CVS Caremark announced that as part of its first Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) report, the company will remove chemicals linked to adverse health outcomes from its house-branded products and will replace them with safer alternatives. The company will also prompt similar action by its manufacturing partners.

According to the company, this is the first cosmetics safety policy to be released by a major drugstore retailer in the United States, and follows closely on the heels of the March announcement by Whole Foods Market of its "Premium Body Care" seal, which is the first private standard for personal care products created by a major retailer in the United States that screens products for safety, efficacy, environmental impact and labeling.

"We welcome the opportunity to work with socially and environmentally conscious companies committed to making and selling safer, healthier products. We strongly support the efforts of CVS Caremark to create and continuously improve its cosmetics safety policy," said Lisa Archer, national coordinator of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. "We challenge other retailers to join the race to the top in improving cosmetics safety."