EcoWaste Coalition Welcomes Quezon City Action Vs. Unauthorized Health Products
An EcoWaste Coalition volunteer explains the phase-out of mercury-added products to a cosmetics vendor.
September 18, 2022, Quezon City. The EcoWaste Coalition commended the government of Quezon City for its latest action to enforce laws and regulations to protect consumers from adulterated, unregistered, or mislabeled health products, including mercury-contaminated cosmetics.
The watchdog group specifically cited the Quezon City Health Department (QCHD) headed by the officer in charge, Dr. Esperanza Anita Escaño-Arias, for directing its Food and Drug Regulatory Officers (FDRO) to inspect stores selling health products such as cosmetics and medicines.
“We commend the Quezon City government for monitoring company compliance with product safety laws and regulations and for confiscating items that may endanger consumer health,” said Aileen Lucero, National Coordinator, EcoWaste Coalition. “Sustained market surveillance and enforcement will help stop substandard and unsafe products from flowing into the marketplace and thereby protect consumers from dangerous goods and unfair trade practices.”
In accordance with the mission orders signed by Dr. Arias, the assigned FDROs recently inspected the cosmetics and dietary supplement stores operating in the premises of Anson Square, Ever Commonwealth, Farmers Plaza, Robinsons Novaliches and Shopwise Cubao.
The inspections were conducted to verify store compliance with regulations pertaining to the sale of health products under the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Act (RA 9711), Philippine Pharmacy Act (RA 10918), Special Law on Counterfeit Drugs (RA 8203), Consumer Act of the Philippines (RA 7394), and Quezon City Ordinance 2767-2018 prohibiting the manufacture, distribution, and sale of skin whitening cosmetics containing mercury.
The FDRO has “packaged, sealed and countersigned” confiscated non-compliant health products, including products with incomplete labeling information or labeled in a foreign language, products without valid notification or registration, over-the-counter drugs and on prescription and FDA notified health products. some products.
Copies of relevant investigation reports and photos were provided by QCHD to quezon city Business Permit and Licensing Department “for immediate legal action” and to various centers within the FDA “for further investigation and proper disposal of unregistered products.” Copies were also given to the QCHD-Environmental Sanitation Division, mall administrators and the EcoWaste Coalition.
We will remember that the EcoWaste Coalition wrote to Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte and Dr. Arias on August 22 to report the illegal sale of FDA-banned mercury-containing skin-whitening cosmetics in at least 10 stores in violation of Order 2767- 2018 from Quezon City.
Previously, the group toured stores on August 18 to educate sellers about the dangers of mercury in skin lightening products on the fifth anniversary of the entry into force of the Minamata Convention on Mercurywhich, among other provisions, phased out in 2020 the manufacture, import or export of cosmetics containing mercury.
“We hope that other local authorities will take inspiration from Quezon City, as well as Baguio City, and take law enforcement action to protect their constituents, especially women of childbearing age, from the products of non-compliant health products such as mercury-contaminated cosmetics and others”, adds Lucero.
On July 20, the Baguio City Government, in conjunction with the FDA’s Regional Enforcement Unit, North Luzon Cluster, conducted synchronized inventory and seizure operations targeting cosmetics containing Mercury in response to the report filed by the EcoWaste Coalition on July 1.
