New Report Drives FTC Complaint Against Crib Mattress Maker LA Baby for Deceptive Claims

New York, NY – May 13, 2021 – Clean and Healthy New York (CHNY), an organization dedicated to building a just and healthy society in which toxic chemicals are unthinkable, lodged a complaint to the Federal Trade Commission against L.A. Baby for misrepresenting the health and environmental benefits of their crib mattress. This complaint results from research for a report also out today, Peeling Back the Green Façade: Calling out “Greenwashing” in the Crib Mattress Market as Lessons on Brand Manipulation of Health and Environmental Claims. The report is issued on behalf of the Getting Ready for Baby campaign, a collaboration of over 100 organizations focused on ensuring all products for babies and toddlers are safe, healthy, and free of harmful chemicals.

This latest report discloses the use of greenwashing practices from 10 crib mattress companies, ranging from overstating the meaning of certification to misusing terminology like “natural,” “nontoxic,” and “organic.”

“What’s outrageous is the ongoing use of the terms “non-toxic,” “organic” and “natural” by companies whose products contain synthetic materials made from cancer-causing chemicals,” said Bobbi Wilding, Executive Director of Clean and Healthy New York and director of the national Getting Ready for Baby campaign. “Greenwashing has become a prevalent trend in the marketplace at large, and we can see it clearly with crib mattresses. We urge the Federal Trade Commission to take action against L.A. Baby, and caution other product makers to make sure they accurately describe their products, so parents and families can choose products that meet their needs.”

Peeling Back The Green Façade is a companion to a report released by the Getting Ready for Baby campaign last summer. The Mattress Still Matters is an investigative report that delves into the materials and chemicals used to make crib mattresses. When collecting the data, it became apparent that some companies are providing vastly overstated, and in some cases, false information about their products. This observation prompted follow-up research to identify companies using dishonest claims, ask them to correct their claims, and seek to hold L.A. Baby accountable through FTC action.

In 2012, Congress expanded the FTC authority to empower federal regulators to go after “greenwashing,” or any manufacturer making misleading claims about consumer products, including crib mattresses. The FTC has the legal authority to punish bad actors vigorously.

The complaint to the Federal Trade Commission highlights several ways that L.A. Baby is “greenwashing,” for which Clean and Healthy New York seeks remedy:

• The company claims that none of its crib mattresses contain toxic materials, when testing for The Mattress Still Matters found a number of chemicals of concern.

• The company promotes its products as “naturally organic” when only some components are natural, and fewer are verifiably certified as organically sourced and manufactured.

• L.A. Baby gives the impression that its products have more certifications than they do, using graphics mixed with certification logos.

From 37 companies reviewed in The Mattress Still Matters report, 10 companies met CHNY’s criteria of greenwashing. CHNY gathered documented evidence from the companies’ marketing materials and consulted with experts and certification programs to verify their concerns. They then contacted all the companies and sent the evidence electronically and by mail, along with a list of requested changes. 

As a result: 

• Four companies updated their marketing materials, reflecting the information about their products more accurately: 

  • Two companies (Babeletto and DaVinci Baby) corrected misleading information about their certifications but did not change all of the language flagged as greenwashing. 

  • Two companies made all requested changes and are not listed in the report.

• Two additional companies (Delta Children and Dream on Me) rejected, for the most part, the findings of the study. Delta Children, however, made minor adjustments while Dream on Me made no changes. 

• Four companies (Colgate Mattress®, Graco®, L.A. Baby, Nook Sleep did not respond at all.   

"Manufacturers need to test their own products—especially those used by small children—and have a transparent process to avoid chemical hazards. Families should be able to read a product label and know what’s inside. The Ecology Center shouldn’t have to test products for us all to know what’s in them," said Melissa Cooper Sargent, Environmental Health Advocate at Ecology Center. Ecology Center tested mattresses for The Mattress Still Matters.

While the research and outreach report incited some immediate results, there’s still much work to be done. Many of the greenwashing claims raised in the Peeling Back the Green Façade report can be immediately corrected if the crib mattress makers make the proper adjustments to their digital marketing materials.

The report offers recommendations for parents, brands, retailers, and regulators. Among them:

Shoppers should:

1. Question claims of “nontoxic,” “organic,” “natural,” or similar terminology. Instead, look for verifiable and robust independent certifications for the whole product such as MADE SAFE®, GOTS, and GOLS.

2. Be wary of marketing assertions such as “BPA-free,” or “PFOS-free,” as products with those statements may contain similar chemicals, with similar health and environmental impacts.

3. Watch out for misrepresentations about materials. For example, any foam with plant-based oils or “soy foam” is still polyurethane, with a small amount of vegetable oil mixed in.

Brands should:

1. Design and make products to meet high quality standards for human and environmental health, and document that by securing robust independent certifications.

2. Provide direct links to explanations and documentation for relevant independent certifications at the point it is marketing them.

3. Avoid meaningless terms like “natural” or “eco-friendly.” Use third-party certifications to prove the benefits of your products.

4. Don’t use the term “non-toxic” unless every single component and process used to make your product from raw material to final products is free of all known or suspected harmful chemicals.

5. Be up front and provide full transparency about what is in your product in every component.

6. Don’t mislead shoppers by emphasizing a minor improvement in one component of your product, such as claiming polyurethane foam is “soy foam” if polyurethane contains a small portion of plant-based oil, or that polyester is recyclable unless you offer a method of recycling (recycling facilities for polyester fibers are readily available.

For more information about the Peeling Back the Green Façade report and the FTC complaint, please contact Bobbi Wilding, CHNY, bobbi@chny.org, 518-708-3875.

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 About Clean & Healthy New York

Clean and Healthy New York (CHNY) is an advocacy organization building a just

and sustainable society in which toxic chemicals are unthinkable. Our work changes laws, shifts markets, and empowers people to advance innovative solutions and create a sustainable economy. chny.org

About the Getting Ready for Baby campaign

The Getting Ready for Baby campaign is a national collaboration of over 100 organizations working to ensure all products made for babies are free of harmful chemicals. Simply put: every baby product should be a healthy product. gettingready4baby.org

buybuy BABY and parent Bed Bath and Beyond score C+ for 2nd year in a row

Out of step with nearly 70% of companies surveyed improved toxic chemical safety programs 

For the second report in a row, buybuy BABY and parent company Bed Bath and Beyond earned a C+ grade from the Mind the Store campaign’s Retailer Report Card, earning just 59 of a possible 164 points.

Bed Bath & Beyond (including subsidiary buybuy BABY) continued on a longstanding path of restricting harmful chemicals, though its efforts have been slower than some of its direct competitors. The company has a safer chemicals policy that includes a broad beyond restricted substance list (BRSL), restrictions on specific flame retardants, a Priority Chemicals List that restricts harmful chemicals in personal care, cosmetic, and cleaning products, and a manufacturing restricted substance list (MRSL).

The report recommended that as Bed Bath & Beyond continues to reshape its business, it fully embeds its safer chemicals policy into its core mission, crafting such a plan at the highest level of decision-making. The company should become a signatory to the Chemical Footprint Project and pilot it with key private-label suppliers. In addition, the company should

• We urge the company to eliminate and safely replace any per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), toxic flame retardants, and phthalates that may be in the products it sells. The company should also eliminate plastics of environmental health concern (PEHCs) from both its product and packaging materials. BBBY should publicly disclose the alternatives used to replace the chemicals of high concern (CHCs) or PEHCs after eliminating them.

• The company should set concrete goals and report on its progress. Collaborating with other retailers and manufacturers to identify safer alternatives could significantly advance its progress. It should prioritize products that are certified by robust third-party standards like GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) and MADE SAFE to document safer materials and to demonstrate to shoppers the quality of the products.

In contrast to this slow progress, the report highlights that, in an unprecedented move in the history of the report, Target and Rite Aid will address racial injustice and health inequity by committing to screening beauty products marketed to women of color for toxic chemicals. Additionally, 12 major retailers with more than 65,000 stores worldwide have now pledged to eliminate or reduce toxic PFAS “forever chemicals” in food packaging.

The report results show significant improvement over time. Nearly 70% of companies surveyed have improved their grade compared to their first evaluation in the retailer report card. “We applaud retail leaders for stepping up to drive harmful chemicals out of consumer products and packaging,” explains report co-author and Mind the Store campaign director Mike Schade. “Despite a global pandemic and incredibly challenging year, retailers have continued to make substantial progress in reducing and eliminating classes of toxic chemicals like PFAS.”

The study finds six retailers with high grades, scoring A- or above. For the first time, Sephora and Whole Foods Market were awarded A grades and joined consistent high performers Apple and Target, each with an A+, and IKEA and Walmart, each with an A-. 

This year’s analysis finds the lowest-ever percentage of retailers with F scores, with only 12 out of 50 receiving failing grades. Companies with failing grades include 7-Eleven, 99 Cents Only Stores, Ace Hardware, Alimentation Couche-Tarde (Circle K, Couche-Tard), Metro, Nordstrom, Publix, Restaurant Brands International (Burger King, Tim Hortons, Popeyes), Sally Beauty, Sobeys, Starbucks, and Subway. “There is really no excuse for these retail laggards to earn a failing grade,” says report co-author and Defend Our Health executive director Mike Belliveau. “Retailers that are not properly managing chemical risks can lose the trust of their customers, lose market share to competitors, and may even risk facing significant financial and regulatory liabilities.”

In an unprecedented move in the history of the report card, two retailers have now committed to evaluating beauty products marketed to women of color for toxic chemicals found in those types of products, which helps address long-standing racial injustice and health inequity. Target and Rite Aid will specifically screen for toxic chemicals that are often found in these products, such as skin lightening cream and hair straighteners and relaxers. This follows the addition of new criteria in the report that challenges retailers to address this racial justice issue. Whole Foods Market has already banned some of these chemicals of concern (such as hydroquinone) in these products as well. 

“We applaud Target and Rite Aid for taking a leadership role in pledging to screen for toxic chemicals that are often found in beauty products marketed to women, and we hope that other retailers will follow their example,” said Taylor Morton, director of environmental health and education at WE ACT for Environmental Justice. “Research shows that women of color have higher levels of toxic chemicals related to beauty products in their bodies, and this is linked to higher incidences of cancer, poor infant and maternal health outcomes, learning disabilities, obesity, asthma, and other serious health concerns. Reducing exposure to toxic chemicals in beauty and other personal care products will help address this critical but often overlooked environmental justice issue that contributes to the disproportionately higher cumulative exposure to toxics in communities of color.”

“Availability of safe and affordable consumer products marketed to Black women is an environmental justice issue,” explains Dr. Maida Galvez, a professor in environmental medicine and public health & pediatrics at Mount Sinai. “Women need to know that products on the marketplace are free of harmful chemicals that can affect their health or their pregnancy. This can have a real and meaningful impact in preventing and reducing harmful exposures to millions of people across the United States.”

The beauty and personal care sector reported among the greatest gains of any retail sector overall. Ulta Beauty was the most improved retailer in the last year, earning a C- grade as compared with its F result in 2019. And, Sephora has shown the greatest improvement over time, receiving an A grade, up from a D when first evaluated in 2017.

The study finds that corporate bans and restrictions around toxic PFAS “forever chemicals” in food packaging have grown considerably since years past. The report now finds 12 retailers now pledge to eliminate or reduce PFAS in food packaging, which impacts more than 65,000 stores worldwide. Meanwhile, some major fast-food and grocery retailers, such as Burger King and Kroger, have not taken action on PFAS in food packaging. “The movement to ban PFAS started in Washington state and now the dominos are falling in the marketplace and other states. This is creating a perfect storm for ending the use of PFAS in food packaging,” explains Toxic-Free Future executive director Laurie Valeriano. 

The report also finds that some retailers are taking new action to restrict PFAS in textiles. Lowe’s became the first major retailer to announce it will no longer sell fabric protection sprays containing PFAS. REI announced that it is restricting PFAS in all clothing treatment and ski wax products but still allows PFAS in outdoor apparel and other textiles.

Dollar stores won “most improved” retail sector overall in the report as compared to last year. Dollar Tree (including Family Dollar) improved from a D+ to a C+. Dollar General earned a C- grade, making progress from its D grade in 2019. “We are pleased to see dollar stores starting to take seriously the need to phase out harmful chemicals from their products,” said José T. Bravo, national coordinator for the Campaign for Healthier Solutions. “Still, they have a long way to go. People of color and low-income communities are already over-exposed to toxic chemicals. Especially during this pandemic, these stores should be going above and beyond to protect their employees and customers.”

The fifth annual Who’s Minding the Store? A Report Card on Retailer Actions to Eliminate Toxic Chemicals evaluates and grades the chemical policies and practices of 50 retail chains covering more than 200,000 stores in the U.S. and Canada. 

To access the full retailer report card, visit www.RetailerReportCard.com.

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