Comment on this story
AP
Cansa published the list of Colipa-compliant products, which provide extra protection against damaging UVA rays, ‘after the public outcry’ and ‘to help the industry’.
Johannesburg – Only 20 of hundreds of sunscreens available in South Africa have listed their products with the Cancer Association of SA (Cansa) as compliant with strict EU standards.
Last month, Cansa appealed to sunscreen makers whose products meet the European Colipa Standard for assessing UVA protection, the most stringent sunscreen tests in use, to provide their certification and their products would be placed on its website.
Some of the 20 brands which have submitted their certification in the past two weeks include BioEarth, Eucerin Sun, Everysun, Nivea, SkinKids and Tropitone.
Cansa chief executive Sue Janse van Rensburg warned sunscreen makers who failed to submit their certification by the end of March that this would be to their “detriment”.
“The industry now has the opportunity to share their brands with the public. We’ll carry on doing it until the end of March. Then, if our seal is on the product and you haven’t upped your product, we’ll force you to take it off. I don’t care if it costs millions.”
Cansa published the list of Colipa-compliant products, which provide extra protection against damaging UVA rays, “after the public outcry” and “to help the industry”.
Earlier, it emerged that its tests on 35 of 357 sunscreens locally available showed the products were not optimal in providing protection against harmful UVA rays, which can cause melanoma. The results were no releasedd because Cansa had signed a confidentiality agreement with Future Cosmetics, the lab that ran the tests.
Most sunscreens still remain untested in terms of EU standards.
Van Rensburg said there were good local brands on the shelves and the public should not believe “all international brands” were superior. “We’re not in the industry’s pockets but it’s important we kept our word and still do right for the public.”
All products adhering to the EU standards and underwritten by Cansa will exhibit the new Cansa SunSmart Choice Seal to help with the identification of improved formulations. – Saturday Star
* For more details on Colipa compliant sunscreens visit: http://www.cansa.org.za/files/2012/09/COLIPA-Compliant-Sunscreens-12Sept20121.pdf
Get our new, free Lifestyle newsletter – subscribe here…
Comment Guidelines
- Please read our comment guidelines.
- Login and register, if you haven’ t already.
- Write your comment in the block below and click (Post As)
- Has a comment offended you? Hover your mouse over the comment and wait until a small triangle appears on the right-hand side. Click triangle () and select “Flag as inappropriate”. Our moderators will take action if need be.
Open all references in tabs: [1 – 4]