Positive outcome

The General Directorate for Competition Policy, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control (DGCCRF) and the French Agency for the Medical Safety of Health Products (AFSSAPS) found that cosmetic products marketed for babies in France complied with standards, i.e. regarding their composition, their microbiological quality, labeling and content of the regulatory file.

"The compliance rate for samples tested is even high when compared to results usually observed for cosmetic products for adults", they note in their report.

Since last fall, the two administrations in charge of the control of the French market have processed to a total of 32 inspections, including among the suppliers of advertising boxes distributed by maternities, under suspicion since last year by the Committee on Sustainable Development in Health (C2DS). French authorities have also analyzed 79 cosmetic products for children under 3 years of age.

"Our overall assessment of the products tested is good," said on her side Nathalie Homobono, General Manager of DGCCRF.

Safety assessment to be improved

In spite of this favorable report, Afssaps and DGCCRF pinpoint "some deficiencies regarding the quality of documents provided in support of the specific assessment on the safety of these products".

Current regulation in Europe compels manufacturers of cosmetic products for children under three years of age to make a specific assessment regarding the safety of products, but it does not specify the particular tests to be performed. On a total of 47 products tested, no assessment was found for 3 products marketed by the same company and 44 evaluations were considered perfectible (that is 93%) by Afssaps.

The companies concerned have positively modified the quality of assessment certificates, but the DGCCRF and Afssaps consider that at this stage, actual improvements cannot be considered sufficient.

A draft of recommendations has been developed by a working group under the responsibility of Afssaps. This document is currently under public consultation and should be completed by the end of this year. Its purpose is to provide operators with guidelines that may enable them to improve the quality of their evaluations.

Finally, French authorities have indicated their will to maintain, as part of their inspections, particular vigilance on cosmetic products intended for children under three years of age.

France will submit the results of its findings to other countries in the European Union to call their attention on the need to strengthen controls on these products in the European market and to harmonize the methods of safety assessment.