Singapore Consumer Products Watchdog Highlights Nail Care Product Incompliance

In March this year, the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) sent 30 nail polish and nail polish remover products from retail stores to a designated lab to test for benzene or toluene. An announcement made on July 20 by CASE reported that all the products were safe and that no benzene was found and that toluene levels were all within permitted limits. Most of the labels were incompliant with Singaporean labeling standards and lacked a full list of cosmetic ingredients.

The CASE stated that according to the Health Products Regulations 2007, (Cosmetic Products-ASEAN Cosmetics Directive) proper labelling is required for all cosmetic products. Labels or labelling statements must include the full list of ingredients in English on the container or package and be clearly legible. 10 of the 15 nail polish products and two of 15 nail polish remover products tested did not indicate a full ingredients list on their labels.

The CASE said it has informed HSA of its findings and the authority will take a series of measures to standardize the cosmetic market and strengthen regulation.