There are more than 800 chemicals on the Proposition 65 list, supposedly known to the State of California to cause cancer or birth defects or other reproductive harm. CBL doesn't try to report on every new listing. But we've seen three new proposals to list chemicals recently that have had our attention: aloe vera whole leaf extract, glyphosate and malathion are are being listed under the "Labor Code" mechanism. Essentially, this means a chemical referenced to by Labor Code section 6382(b)(1) is automatically added to the Proposition 65 list. The Labor Code section references chemicals listed as human or animal carcinogens by the United Nations' International Agency for Research on Cancer ("IARC"). So, if a chemical is correctly listed as a carcinogen or probable carcinogen by IARC, it gets listed as a carcinogen by OEHHA. The listing hasn't happened yet, but it will, and one year after listing, companies who expose anyone to these chemicals in California will have to give a "clear and reasonable warning."
The "Aloe Vera whole leaf extract" isn't the stuff we see in skin lotions, or to make sunburn better. It's "whole leaf extract" often sold by health food and supplement stores as a digestive aid.
Aloe Leaf photo credit: Tom Rulkins, Some Rights Reserved, Creative Commons License [Image unmodified]
More after the jump.
Continue reading "Coming Soon to The Proposition 65 List: Roundup, Malathion and Aloe Vera" »