American personal care and cosmetic lobby
American personal care and cosmetic industry are often at the mercy of the various lobby groups in the country. Very often, the lobby groups do play one of the most crucial roles of regulating the use of the personal cosmetic produced due to the harmful impact that they might have on the user’s skins. With the country have over 300,000 beauty experts, the various lobby groups which work to champion for the safe use of the personal cosmetic products have directly and indirectly resulted in the reduction of the penetration of the fake personal care and cosmetics reaching to the millions of the cosmetic users in the USA. The lobby groups have targeted the manufacturing companies, direct sellers of the personal attention and cosmetics products as wells user on an equal measure. This has led to awareness creation on the use of these products as well as the producers of these products being pushed into producing legit produces. This element of lobbying for safer personal care and cosmetics products is the key reason which tremendous change have occurred in the American cosmetic market (Aronczyk, 2016)..
Thesis Statement: Lobbies have played an essential role in the regulation of American personal care and cosmetic industries.
Regulation Challenges in the American cosmetic industry
The cosmetic industry in the U.S. has been one that is minimally regulated for a long time. The cosmetics companies manufacture millions of products that are used widely by women and young girls yet with little safety regulations. However, with the increasing concerns over body reactions to makeup and other cosmetic products, the importance of control on the sector is becoming apparent (Narayan). Some long term and short term adverse effects have been cited, including cancer, breathing problems, itchy skin, among others. Other than effects on one body, their public health concerns associated with environmental pollution from cosmetic products and industries. Different lobby groups have emerged, creating awareness and pushing for restrictions on the cosmetic industry. While their intentions are clear, the force can be easily dismissed as one with little impact. The role of the lobbies, however, is at times not apparent yet for them to keep up their work and gain support, there is a need to draw their impact in the cosmetic industry. Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
Globally the various companies have been shut down as a result of the production of counterfeit personal care products and cosmetics. In total, it has been reported that about 1400 chemicals ingredients in cosmetic products that have been banned in nearly forty countries, only nine of those are illegal in America (Faber). The FDA requires cosmetic companies to provide proof of safety through self-regulation, which is just like a non-requirement for products’ safety approval (Pferdehirt, 19). Information on the protection of products has been misguiding, exposing users to dangers of short and long term health problems. With this going on, the user of these personal care products still falls victims of such unfit products as the companies producing such unsafe product do manipulate their ways in the American cosmetic markets.
The Role of Lobbies in Safety and Regulation
Lobbies, including cosmetic users, have used different ways to raise their concerns and work towards pushing for tight regulations for consumer’s safety in the cosmetic industry. Environmental Health advocates and groups such as the Environmental Working Group (EWG) are among the lobbies whose work is also a force in the industry. With intense lobbying, the FDA was forced to research the details of safety practices and standards for about 900 cosmetic companies (Narayan). Further, the lawmakers have taken up the matter as of importance to public health. According to lobbies are few legislative measures protecting cosmetic products consumers. Self-policing as a tool to face out harmful products, through the Personal Care Products Council has not been active (Narayan). As lobbies, the public health activists and the public are a great force that plays a significant role in regulating the sectors and prompting legislative actions. For example, the first Act was in 1906, whereby the public cried about the cosmetic industry being unchecked, and they would get products that were low quality and hazardous (Aronczyk, 2016).
The outcry led to Congress developing a policy that would help to control the industry through standardization of the final products (Lacanau et al., 365). The other legislative measures, though with good intentions, are not workable due to poor implementation. The Cosmetic Act of 1983 was developed to oversee the safety of foods, drugs, and cosmetics as the government felt that better for all the citizens to be safe from hazardous chemicals. It was put in place after an outcry to supplement the 1906 Act which was permissive on harmful products. The Act tried to regulate the process of manufacturing by focusing on processing and packaging processes as one way to balance the industry. It also concentrates on the border entries whereby the quality of the products could be tested before getting the ticket to be allowed in the United States. Manufacturers are also allowed to submit all their products to the FDA for testing before they reach the consumers in all states.
Despite the various government bodies which resulted in the penetration of the cost exaggeration, unsafe and fake personal care and cosmetic products in the American market. The authorities have achieved very little in protecting American personal care and competitive product users. In recent days, the lobby groups have come in handy in changing the situation. The different lobby groups from the various parts of the country have stood in to create awareness millions the users of these products, especially women and young girls (Aronczyk, 12). This has gone a long way in the regulation of the harmful impact of the products while at the same preventing the exportation of the product users both from individual sellers and the manufactures of the products. The lobbies have over the recent time used the voices of movement to champion for the proper monitor of this product by the relevant bodies which are concerned with this activity. The various groups have been involved in the creation of awareness and sensitization of the products which are unfit for use. Besides, the lobby groups have also pushed the government agencies in the country to help in the crackdown of personal care and cosmetic products which do not meet the market requirement
The role played by the lobby groups has however in the recent years faced some hiccups as the sellers of these products have designed other method of evading the crackdown on the personal care and cosmetics merchandise in the country which fails the market standard tests. Having understood the role played by the lobbies the manufactures and the sellers of these products have come up with methods of evading the impact of the government agencies which are charged with such regulation. They have also developed some other unsuspecting channel of fake personal care and cosmetics products to evade the crackdown and the notice of the various lobbies. These channels despite the hard work done by the lobby groups to ensure safer personal care and cosmetic America have managed to continue though at a reduced level the american personal care and cosmetic industry (Graff, 58).
Fig 1: A lobby group championing for safe cosmetics in the USA.
Apart from forcing legislation, the groups create awareness. Cosmetic benefits on both women and a fraction of men who use them are incomparable to the purported hazards associated with them. While most users are focused on the results, the lobbies create awareness on the adverse health issues of some products. People have made it loud clear they are afraid of cosmetics associated with chemicals, but with proper enactments of production rules, this perspective can convert into actual means. What is new and source of attention-seeking in the cosmetic industry is the media focus. This has more to do with issues surrounding workplace risks and safety as well as product liabilities standards. Media focus is significantly intensifying the cosmetic market position in the beauty industry. In the real sense, the media intensity focus and the aesthetic regulatory interests are working hand in hand to reinforce each other effectively. The use of media is essential, for example in 2018 Kardashian a reality show star was interview by the president of EWG and addressed Congress as an advocate for the safety of personal care and cosmetics products (Jacob,94). Such initiative help change the masses’ attitude in helping support the safety and regulation of the cosmetics industry (Aronczyk, 27).
The personal care and cosmetic product lobbies In the USA, still have a considerably long way to go in achieving a safer American cosmetic industry. The Lobbies do one of the most crucial roles and do call for the support of the government to change the situation. They bring in trust in the industry and allow public scrutiny regarding consumer safety issues. Therefore the lobbies should be supported as a force assuring accountability and allowing the citizens to enjoy using cosmetics without fear. Generally, lobby groups such as the Environmental Working Group (EWG) have put a lot of effort in creating awareness on the effects of some chemical elements in cosmetics. The strategy increases caution in the use of the products and some instances boycotting of some products. The criticism of the FDA regulation process is another strategy uptake by the group. The strategy creates a foundation for reasonable action on the measures of cosmetics regulations. A recent survey on cosmetic firms is an indication of responding to the pressure of activism. While little progress is observation, it should be noted that the alternative is having nothing done and continually keep suffering the consequences of the unregulated cosmetic industry (Graff, 2018).
Conclusion
The role of the various bodies to scrutinize the quality of the personal care and cosmetic product that get access to the American public market remains insignificant. The government has tremendously failed to regulate the harmful personal care and cosmetics product in the U.S. market, knowing very well the dangers that thee products ha on the users. The government agencies such as the FDA is doing very little. However, the role played by the various lobbies in the country to regulate the element of exploitation, wrong guidance for use, unfit personal care and cosmetic products is very eminent. Multiple people who could have been the victim of the unsafe products in the market have been saved by the lobbies operating from all over the country. With the support of the various agencies of government, the goal of achieving America free from unsafe personal care products is possible by 2025. It is a collective responsibility of everyone in the country to ensure that this is achieved as this will make it easy for the lobbies to conduct while blowing for such products.
References
Aronczyk, Melissa. “Market (ing) activism: Lush Cosmetics, Ethical Oil, and the self-mediation of protest.” JOMEC Journal 4 (2016).
Faber, Scott. “On Cosmetics Safety, U.S. Trails More Than 40 Nations.” EWG, 2019, https://www.ewg.org/news-and-analysis/2019/03/cosmetics-safety-us-trails-more-40-nations.
Graff, Peter. “Lobbyology and the Role of Lobby Spectacles in Silent-Film Exhibition.” Film History 30.4 (2018): 48-83.
Jacobs, Lauren. “Beauty Shouldn’t Cause Pain: A Makeover Proposal for the FDA’s Cosmetics Regulation.” Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary 39.1 (2019): 82-127.
Lacuna, Emanuela, et al. “Building Biobetters: The Regulatory Landscape.” Biobetters. Springer, New York, NY, 2015. 361-370.
Narayan, Priyanka. “The Cosmetics Industry Has Avoided Strict Regulation for over a Century. Now Rising Health Concerns Has FDA Inquiring.” CNBC, 2 Aug. 2018, https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/01/fda-begins-first-inquiry-of-lightly-regulated-cosmetics-industry.html.
Pferdehirt, Elizabeth. Potentially dangerous ingredients in personal care and cosmetic products: an analysis and comparison of the United States and European policy. Diss. University of Pittsburgh, 2015.