The formation of the home care standard is the second of its kind from the NPA. In May 2008, the NPA established a standard and seal for natural personal care products, such as lotions, balms and shampoos.More than 340 products have currently been approved and certified.
"A number of products that are mainly synthetic are being positioned as natural. This leads to significant consumer confusion about the category and products people are choosing," said Daniel Fabricant, Ph.D., vice president of scientific and regulatory affairs at the NPA. "To provide the consumer peace of mind in the marketplace, the new natural standard for home care will inject integrity into natural for the person who matters most, the consumer" he said.
The standard comes amidst growing consumer confusion about what makes a product natural. A recent national survey* found that natural ingredients are important to consumers and that there should be standards:
•78% of those surveyed said there should be regulations/standards for natural home care products
•72% believe it's important that ingredients in home care products are natural
• 73% are more likely to purchase a home care product if they knew it was certified as natural
The Natural Certification Program and Seal of Approval:
Under the new program, products must follow strict guidelines set out by the NPA to merit bearing the seal. The criteria include, but are not limited to:
• No ingredients with any suspected human health risks
• No processes that significantly or adversely alter the natural ingredients
• Ingredients that come from a purposeful, natural source (flora, fauna, mineral)
• Processes that are minimal and don't use synthetic/harsh chemicals
• Non-natural ingredients only when viable natural alternative ingredients are unavailable and only when there are absolutely no suspected potential human health risks
• Transparency and full disclosure of ingredients
The full set of criteria can be found on the Natural Products Association website at www.TheNaturalSeal.org.