What is the problem?
Tiny plastic particles have been added to many personal care products marketed around the world!
When we exfoliate our body or brush our teeth , with products that contain these microspheres, barely visible to With the naked eye, they flow directly from sinks, showers and bathtubs into the sewer system. The'swastewater treatment plants are not designed to filter microspheres and therefore, they cause a series of impacts on the marine environment as they are impossible to remove.
How to collaborate?
send legible photos of the products (front and back, including ingredients and barcode)
for: ap.lixomarinho@gmail.com with the subject BTM Campaign.
The campaign
two NGOs Dutch, the North Sea Foundation and the Plastic Soup Foundation, launched a smartphone app in 2012 as part of their Beat the Microbead campaign ("Combat Microspheres"). this application allowed at the time to consumers in the Netherlands to verify that the personal care products they use have in their constitution plastic microspheres.
In the summer of 2013, UNEP, the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment and the UK-based NGO Fauna & Flora International partnered with these foundations to develop an application for international use.
Through this smartphone application, consumers can scan the personal care products to check for the presence of plastic microspheres, indicating the following colors:
Red: This product contains microspheres.
Orange: This product still contains microspheres, but the manufacturer has indicated that they will either replace them within a certain period of time or adapt the product.
Green: This product is free of plastic microspheres.
The microspheres used in personal care products are mainly made of polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) and nylon.
Each country participating in the campaign will have its own database of products that contain or do not contain microspheres.
Tips:
- Usually the ingredients are written in English:
Polyethylene (PE); Nylon-12/6/66; Polypropylene (PP); nylon-11; PMMA; nylon-6; copolymer polyethyleen terephthalate (PET)
- Products can be national or imported
- Search for products: body and facial exfoliating soap/gel (scrubs, peelings), deep cleaning, toothpaste (adult and child)
In addition to the already known Polyethylene (PE), Polypropylene (PP), Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) or Nylon, follow the new plastic ingredients that often are added to hygiene and cosmetic products:
Poly (1,4-cis-Isoprene)
Poly (2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate)
Poly (2-hydroxypropyl methacrylate)
Polyacrylate
Polyacrylonitrile
Polyacrylonitrile butadiene styrene
Polyactide
Polyalkyd resins
Polyalkyl stearate/vinyl acetate copolymers
Polybutylene/Ethylene/Styrene copolymer
Polybutyl acrylate
Polybutyl methacrylate
Polybutylene terephthalate
Polycaprolactam (Nylon 6)
Polycellulose acetate
Polycellulose nitrate
Polychloroprene
Polydimethylsiloxane (silicone)
Polyethyleneimine
Polyethylene glycol
Polyelastine-like polypeptide
Polyepoxy resins
Polyethyl acrylate
Polyethyl methacrylate
Polyethylene methylactylate copolymer
Polyethylene vinyl acetate
Polyethylene/acrylate copolymer
Polyethylene/propylene/styrene copolymer
Poly (ε-caprolactone)
Polyformaldehyde (Oxymethylene)
Polyglycolic Acid
Polyisobornyl acrylate
Polyisobornyl methacrylate
Polyisobutyl methacrylate
Polyisobutylene
Polyisoprene
Polylactic acid
Polylaurolactam (Nylon 12 or Amide-12)
Polylauryl methacrylate
Polymethacrylated hyaluronic acid
Polymethacrylonitrile
Polymethyl acrylate
Poly (n-Hexyl methacrylate)
Poly (N-isopropylacrylamide)
Polyoctyl methacrylate
Polypentaerythrityl terephthalate
Polypropyl acrylate
Polypropyl methacrylate
Polypropylene oxide
Polypropylene terephthalate
Polystearyl methacrylate
Polystyrene
Polystyrene/Acrylate copolymer
Polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon)
Polytetrahydrofuran
Polytrimethylsiloxysilicate (Silicone resin)
Polyurethane
Polyvinyl acetate
Polyvinyl alcohol
Polyvinyl chloride
Polyvinylidene chloride
Polyvinylpolypyrrolidon
Ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymer
Amazing and scary, isn't it?!
So what products can we safely consume? In this new stage of the Campaign International to eliminate the use of Microplasticsin Cosmetics, the “Look for the Zero” trust seal appears, through which, the
manufacturer declares that its products are guaranteed free of microplastics.
Todos os vídeos
Consumes of hygiene and cosmetic products and
have questions or want to know more details about the campaign?
He is a manufacturer/dealer of hygiene and cosmetic products
and want to recognize the your products as 100% free of microplastics ?
In Portugal the Campaign International to eliminate the use of Microplastics in cosmetics is developed by APLM.
All information in http://www.beatthemicrobead.org
GEOTA is APLM's partner in this campaign.
