California Attorney General Brings Lawsuit Under Anti-Toxics Law
California Attorney General Jerry Brown (D) has filed a lawsuit against four soap manufacturers, alleging that they failed to indicate on the soap products' labels that the products include a chemical that could cause cancer, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Brown filed the lawsuit in Alameda County Superior Court last month. The suit alleges that the companies' body washes, gels and liquid dish soaps contain 1,4-dioxane.
California's voter-approved anti-toxics law, Proposition 65, requires labels to include a warning if such potentially carcinogenic chemicals are included in products above a certain level. Each violation of the law carries fines of up to $2,500 per day (Chang, Los Angeles Times, 6/11).
The companies named in the lawsuit are:
- Avalon Natural Products;
- Beaumont Products;
- NutriBiotic; and
- Whole Foods Market (AP/San Francisco Chronicle, 6/10).