Attorney general files suit over skin care ingredient.

The Attorney General of California filed a lawsuit last month against personal care companies whose products recently tested highest for the carcinogenic contaminant 1,4-Dioxane. The action was in part to a study released by the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) in March of this year, but also based on testing.

Under California's "Proposition 65" consumer products that contain toxic levels of 1,4-Dioxane must have warning labels stating they may cause cancer. 1,4-Dioxane is typically produced as a byproduct when ingredients are ethoxylated with the petrochemical ethylene oxide, a process which has become standard practice for many cleansing and moisturizing products.

The suit, California v. Avalon Natural Products (manufacturer of the Alba brand), also names Whole Foods Market California (manufacturer of the Whole Foods 365 brand), Beaumont Products (manufacturer of the Citrus Magic brand) and Nutribiotic.

According to a statement to the press, it is unclear exactly which products manufactured by the aforementioned companies triggered the lawsuit, but all named companies have sold products that tested close to or in excess of 20 parts per million for 1,4-Dioxane in the OCA study released at the Natural Products Expo in Anaheim, CA in March. The OCA sent a letter to the four companies named in the California lawsuit to see if they are planning changes to their labeling or product formulations. At press time, according to the Beaumont company, it has reformulated their products to remove the problematic ingredient.

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The California Attorney General alleges these companies should have put warning labels on products containing high levels of 1,4-Dioxane, stating that they may cause cancer. Per Proposition 65, fines for mislabeled products are as high as $2,500 per day for each violation.