In a letter to President Joe Biden, the American Cleaning Institute (ACI) outlined several policy priorities to “help ensure and enhance the availability of critical products and chemistries for the American people.”
ACI’s goal “remains to ensure delivery of finished cleaning, sanitizing and disinfecting products critical to combating the novel coronavirus to market and increasing the supply of ingredients to accomplish this goal,” wrote Melissa Hockstad, ACI President and CEO. “ACI member companies have increased production and are operating around the clock to produce vital products to protect individuals from the spread of COVID-19 and to meet the dramatic expansion in demand.”
For the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), ACI urged “continued funding and attention to a robust Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) implementation and chemical management processes to ensure speed to market of important cleaning product chemistries.”
ACI also noted that Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations significantly impact currently marketed health care and consumer topical antiseptic products through testing requirements for active ingredients that support determinations of their safety and efficacy “which are greatly burdening product manufacturers.”
“ACI has developed and submitted to FDA detailed work plans to satisfy the agency’s data requirements for the safety and effectiveness of these ingredients. We urge the Agency to ensure the continued availability of highly sought after products with these deferred active ingredients to consumer healthcare and commercial audiences.”
ACI also addressed FDA’s guidance allowing temporary formulators of much-needed alcohol-based hand sanitizers during the COVID-19 pandemic to address market shortages but expressed concern about reported poisoning and exposure incidents across the country from some hand sanitizers.
“ACI urges continued market surveillance for products that do not conform to FDA’s temporary manufacturing and labeling guidance in order to maintain the safety of all consumers who use these products.”
The American Cleaning Institute® (ACI – www.cleaninginstitute.org) is the Home of the U.S. Cleaning Products Industry® and represents the $60 billion U.S. cleaning product supply chain. ACI members include the manufacturers and formulators of soaps, detergents, and general cleaning products used in household, commercial, industrial and institutional settings; companies that supply ingredients and finished packaging for these products; and chemical distributors. ACI serves the growth and innovation of the U.S. cleaning products industry by advancing the health and quality of life of people and protecting our planet. ACI achieves this through a continuous commitment to sound science and being a credible voice for the cleaning products industry.