Copyright journal
Quezon City. The toxics watchdog group EcoWaste Coalition gave the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) the thumbs up for warning consumers against the risks of consuming Temulawak Beauty Whitening Cream (Day & Night), an unauthorized cosmetic being sold online. As stated in FDA Advisory No. 2025-0811 issued on July 14, 2025 and published on the agency’s website last October 1, the said product is unauthorized and has not been given a Certificate of Product Notification, making its sale a violation of Republic Act No. 9711, or the FDA Act of 2009, and its implementing rules and regulations. The use of cosmetics without market authorization, the FDA pointed out, pose health risks to consumers, which may arise from heavy metal contaminants or from ingredients not permitted in cosmetic product formulations. Last June 16, the EcoWaste Coalition reported to the FDA the unlawful sale online of nine skin lightening products with mercury content ranging from 384 to 7,043 parts per million (ppm). Mercury and its compounds are among the substances that must not form part of the composition of cosmetic products as per the ASEAN Cosmetic Directive. Among the nine products reported were Temulawak New Day & Night Beauty Whitening Cream with 7,043 ppm of mercury and Temulawak Beauty Whitening Cream (Day & Night) with 648 ppm of mercury. The FDA has so far issued three public health advisories on skin lightening products carrying the name “Temulawak,” a medicinal plant belonging to the ginger family that is grown in Indonesia and other Southeast Asian countries. It is also known as Java ginger, Javanese ginger, or Javanese turmeric. FDA Advisory No. 2018-106, 2022-1347 and 2025-0811 flagged Temulawak New Day & Night Beauty Whitening Cream, Temulawak Day and Night Cream and Temulawak Beauty Whitening Cream (Day & Night), respectively, for containing mercury or for lacking market authorization. While the said products are named “Temulawak,” the EcoWaste Coalition observed that temulawak, ginger or turmeric is not listed among the product ingredients and neither is mercury. While appreciating the FDA-issued public health warnings, the group emphasized the need for stronger measures to stop the importation, distribution and sale of cosmetics containing hazardous chemicals such as mercury, a toxic threat to human health and the environment. As it has emphasized during the group’s intervention on November 3 at the Sixth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP6) of the Minamata Convention on Mercury in Geneva, Switzerland: “Mercury-added products still circulate in markets and online, putting users’ health at risk and contaminating the environment. This undermines the Convention’s credibility and its promise to protect people and the planet.” Speaking on behalf of the EcoWaste Coalition and the International Pollutants Elimination Network (IPEN), Chinkie Peliño-Golle stressed the importance of a concerted response to ensure that the global ban on mercury in cosmetics is not just a decision on paper, but a protection realized in people’s lives and communities. “We urge Parties to fully enforce the zero-mercury standard, strengthen market and customs surveillance, and sustain public education campaigns that protect consumers and promote acceptance of all natural skin tones. Civil society stands ready to contribute to advancing the global mercury ban from commitment to concrete change in people’s lives,” said Peliño- Golle who is also the IPEN Regional Coordinator for Southeast and East Asia. References: https://www.fda.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/FDA-Advisory-No.2022-1347.pdf (Temulawak Day Cream, Temulawak Night Cream) https://www.fda.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/FDA-Advisory-No.-2018-106.pdf (Temulawak New Day & Night Beauty Whitening Cream)
