Market Investigation on the Illegal Importation of Mercury-Containing Skin Whitening Creams in the Philippines
The EcoWaste Coalition, an environmental watchdog group promoting chemical safety and zero waste, conducted a market investigation between November 2014 and February 2015 to determine the availability of mercury-containing skin whitening products, particularly facial creams, in the Philippines. EcoWaste Coalition procured 355 samples of skin whitening creams from various retailers in 50 cities across the archipelago and had them analyzed for mercury content using a portable X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) device.