The personal care products (PCPs) industry is a significant contributor to the global economy, accounting for $237 billion and supporting more than 3.5 million jobs in the United States (Personal Care Products Council, 2016), and projected to reach $630 billion globally in 2017 (Lucintel, 2012). Many of the compounds used in PCPs are classified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) as “emerging contaminants” or “contaminants of emerging concern” due to the known or suspected endocrine disrupting potential of many of the chemicals in these products. Given that many PCPs are applied topically, compounds classified as EDCs have been found in human tissues (Center for Deisease Control and Prevention, 2009). Additionally, EDCs have been found in surface water (Kolpin et al., 2002) and have the potential to impact the endocrine systems of aquatic species at environmentally relevant concentrations.
Click here to download the ASABE Conference paper (Gluberman, M., L. Garcia, R. Taylor, and H.E. Gall. 2016. Development of an endocrine disrupting compounds footprint calculator. St. Joseph, MI. ASABE. doi:10.13031/aim.2016202455889)
