France is calling on the European Union to drastically reduce the use of octocrylene, a common UV filter in sunscreen and makeup products, by 2027. According to data collected by the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) and forwarded to ECHA, this sunscreen filter is harmful to the environment and can be easily replaced at a reasonable cost.
“Every year, more than 1,500 tons of octocrylene are used in cosmetic products in Europe,” contaminating aquatic environments and soils, which leads to “unacceptable risks” for “the reproduction and growth of aquatic species” (shrimp, fish, algae) and “terrestrial” organisms, according to ANSES.
Releases into the environment
This chemical, present as a “UV filter, UV absorber, and photostabilizer” in about 30% of sunscreens and other cosmetics, such as makeup, day creams, and perfumes, “ends up in domestic wastewater,” pollutes soil through “sewage sludge,” and “contaminates lakes, rivers and coastal seas during swimming,” the Agency warns.
Beyond its impact on aquatic life, this substance accumulates in large quantities and persists in the environment, raising concerns for human health. According to ANSES, it may have toxic effects on the thyroid and reproduction. The agency also warns that octocrylene could be an endocrine disruptor, but manufacturers did not submit the data needed to evaluate this risk in time.
ANSES, which has studied the substance since 2012, said in 2023 that it should be prohibited from cosmetics.
Although “significant quantities are found in sunscreens,” with a maximum concentration of 10% authorized by European regulations, “there are multiple sources of releases into the environment” depending on “the types of products and sales volumes,” Stéphane Jomini, scientific project manager at ANSES, told AFP.
On behalf of France, ANSES has put forward a proposal to “drastically reduce” the allowed levels of octocrylene in cosmetics to “preserve the environment,” within the framework of the EU’s REACH regulation on chemical manufacture and use.
“Moderate” additional costs
The proposed 0.001% cap would “lead to cosmetic products containing octocrylene being removed from the market,” since at that level the substance has no UV-filtering effect. ANSES is not calling for an outright ban, as it may still appear as an impurity in some products.
After assessing the “socio-economic impacts” of the measure, the agency considers the extra costs of producing sunscreens with a “combination of alternative substances” to be “moderate”: an estimated EUR 39 million annually between 2027 and 2036, representing 0.04% of European cosmetics sales in 2023.
Given “manufacturers’ current margins on these products, these costs would be absorbed without too much difficulty,” Karine Fiore, deputy director of the social sciences department at ANSES, told AFP. In fact, “octocrylene-free sunscreens have been available for several years,” she added.
The health agency also measured consumer acceptance of potential price increases through a survey of 7,200 people in six European countries. The findings show that the amount consumers are willing to pay “far outweighs the costs of the restriction,” demonstrating that “Europeans want to have cosmetics that do not negatively affect the quality of aquatic environments,” the agency reports.
The proposal is open for public consultation on ECHA’s website until March 24, 2026. ECHA’s risk and socio-economic committees will deliver their opinions in September 2026, paving the way for a European Commission decision in 2027 at the earliest.
