Warning Out on Beauty Cream Banned in PH and UK, but Still Sold Online
19 January 2026, Quezon City. The toxics watchdog group EcoWaste Coalition warned consumers against the purchase and use of Faiza Beauty Cream sold online despite being banned in the Philippines and most recently in the UK.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued Advisory No. 2024-0908 following the report made by the EcoWaste Coalition regarding the online sale of the unauthorized Faiza product from Pakistan, which also screened positive for mercury (a highly hazardous substance banned in cosmetics).
EcoWaste Coalition has reiterated its warning against the illegal online trade of FDA-flagged cosmetics, acting on a recent BBC report about the seizure of mercury-laden Faiza Beauty Cream.
According to BBC news, laboratory tests found Faiza Beauty Cream and Tibet Snow seized by Trading Standards officers from local shops in Luton Borough, England, contaminated with mercury. Faiza tested with 19,170 mg/kg of mercury, and Tibet with 85.92 mg/kg.
According to Luton Borough Council: “Mercury is highly toxic and can have serious health effects, including damage to the nervous, digestive, and immune systems, as well as the lungs, kidneys, skin, and eyes. Exposure can be particularly harmful to unborn children, and mercury can accumulate in the body over time, even at very low levels.”
It further warned that “mercury from these products can also pollute watercourses and enter the food chain, posing wider environmental risks.”
Councillor Maria Lovell, portfolio holder for Trading Standards, said: “Protecting the health of our residents is at the heart of what Trading Standards does. These illegal and unsafe products were removed from sale before anyone could be harmed, but it is important for shoppers to be vigilant.”
The EcoWaste Coalition echoed Lovell’s plea for consumer vigilance to prevent exposure to mercury through unauthorized skin lightening products from an unknown source with unknown composition.
“As we push health, trade, and customs regulators to enforce the laws banning mercury-added cosmetics, we also call on consumers to be extra vigilant in the exercise of their legally guaranteed rights to product information and safety,” said Aileen Lucero, National Coordinator, EcoWaste Coalition. “With consumer vigilance, we hope the entities behind the illegal trade of banned cosmetics will be identified and held accountable.”
To protect users and non-users from the adverse effects of mercury exposure through adulterated skin lighteners, the EcoWaste Coalition encouraged consumers to:
— Refrain from using skin bleaching, lightening, or whitening products, and accept your natural skin color.
— Shun products with improper labels and those with labeling information that you do not understand.
— Reject products without proper market authorization.
— Stop using banned or warned cosmetics, and
— Discontinue use of mercury-added cosmetics and see a doctor for medical evaluation and advice.
The toxics watchdog group also appealed to online shopping and social media platforms to remove product listings for mercury-added cosmetics forthwith, noting that they can also be held liable for failing to halt unlawful activities on their sites, as per Republic Act No. 11967, or the Internet Transactions Act of 2023.
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