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Many cleaning products contain allergens without mentioning them on their labels, a legal practice, but deemed “inadmissible” by UFC-Que Choisir.
The association tested 60 cleaning products (detergents, fabric softeners, dishwashing liquids, household cleaners, etc.) to identify the presence of allergens: 26 substances for which labeling is already mandatory above a certain threshold and 31 for which this is not the case.
27 products out of 60 “contain one or more of these new allergens”
For cosmetics, manufacturers will be obliged to report the presence of these “new” substances likely to trigger allergic reactions from the summer of 2026, but this obligation does not concern, for the moment, cleaning products, underlines UFC-Que Choisir.
Among the 60 products tested, 27 “contain one or more of these new allergens”, indicates the association, and only one product mentions it on its packaging.
The use of allergenic perfumes also concerns four products presented as “hypoallergenic”, for “sensitive skin” or “sensitive”, notes the association, pinpointing a “lack of information” for consumers which is however not contrary to the regulation.
Allergens that have been known for a long time…
“This opacity is all the more unacceptable as the list of new allergens has been known for a long time” for the cosmetics sector.
UFC-Que Choisir therefore calls for “to immediately extend the labeling of new allergenic perfumes to detergent products” and “to strictly regulate mentions of the type +hypoallergenic+, +sensitive skin+ or +sensitive+, in particular by prohibiting them in the event of presence of allergenic or irritant compound”.
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