The Repression of Fraud and the Directorate General of Health are launching two investigations to lift the veil on the composition of tampons and intimate protections.
Transparency is still not on the feminine hygiene shelves. But the situation is moving in the right direction. Mélanie Doerflinger, author of a petition launched in July 2015 on Change.org, has just met the Ministry of Health. Two investigations will be launched.
The composition of tampons, sanitary napkins and panty liners is of concern. At the time of publication, 245,000 Internet users have signed Mélanie Doerflinger’s petition. It demands from manufacturers of intimate hygiene products more transparency on their composition. They had committed to progress on this plan on March 4, with the Secretary of State for Consumer Affairs, Martine Pinville.
Search for allergens
A meeting with the director of the “External environment and chemicals” office of the Ministry of Health enabled even more in-depth measures to be announced. The first investigation will be carried out by the General Directorate for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control (DGCCRF). Its inspectors will be able to take samples from the products sold, visit French production sites and manufacturers will be required to deliver their specifications. The objective: to look for the presence of aggressive perfumes or allergens.
The second investigation will take place on the side of the Directorate General of Health (DGS), which will look for the presence of polluting substances in feminine hygiene products. Work should also be done on the impact of tampons and pads on female genitals. “Here again, this will take time because we will have to deal with the lack of scientific documentation”, underlines Mélanie Doerflinger.
The meeting would also have made it possible to confirm that France will request that regulations be put in place at the level of the European Commission.
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