Is Jessica Alba’s Honest Company lying to consumers?
Customers have complained that an SPF 30 sunscreen the actress’s billion-dollar company sells isn’t very effective, and their skin is getting sun burned as a result.
Although Honest says it takes “all the consumer feedback very seriously,” the company seems confident their product is “safe and effective.”
“Our Sunscreen Lotion was tested, by an independent 3rd party, against the protocols prescribed by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration’s (FDA) monograph for over-the-counter sunscreen products,” the company said Sunday in a statement. “The results showed that our product is effective and safe for use as an 80 minute water-resistant (FDA’s highest rating), SPF 30 sunscreen lotion in accordance with FDA regulations when used as directed (Shake Well. Apply liberally and evenly 15 minutes before sun exposure. Reapply after 80 minutes of swimming or sweating, immediately after towel drying and at least every 2 hours).”
Here are two angry customers that either didn’t follow directions, or reapplied a faulty sun screen to their bodies.
Don’t buy @Honest sunscreen unless u want to look like this. Second time I’ve tried this stuff and got fried pic.twitter.com/pEhO5GYIkQ
— Lindsy (@LindsyMarshall) July 26, 2015
@Honest this is my very real result from Honest 30 SPF sunscreen. Only spent 1 hour outside. Burnt. #nothappy #red pic.twitter.com/T42TNeg5mj
— Brandon Atherton (@bdatherton) June 1, 2015
Honest tweeted back in both instances and offered to help.
Meanwhile, the sunscreen in question is sold out on the company’s website, which hasn’t received enough complaints to be alarmed.
“The number of complaints received on our own website about our Sunscreen Lotion constitute less than one half of one percent of all units actually sold at honest.com,” Honest said in a statement.
While most zinc oxide sunscreens list 18-25 percent non-nano zinc oxide as an active ingredient, NBC5 in Chicago points out that the lotion’s formula was changed to reduce that ingredient to just 9.3 percent.
Honest, however, says it added other components to make up for the difference in zinc, and maintains transparency “about the amount of zinc since the new formula came out in early 2015 as seen on the website and the new formula’s packaging.”