My name is Sofie Devlieger<\/strong>. I am a doctor of chemistry, educator in the beauty industry, and CEO of a wholesale business for professional nail products. Daily, I work with professionals who perform their work with passion, care, and knowledge. People who are trained, who work according to the strictest standards, and who \u2013 just like me \u2013 believe in safety, innovation, and ethics<\/strong>. <\/p>\n Yet I watch with sadness how regulations that should protect us sometimes have exactly the opposite effect<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Take, for example, the EU’s recent decision to ban the ingredient TPO<\/strong> (Trimethylbenzoyl diphenylphosphine oxide) in cosmetics. The justification? Results from animal testing<\/strong> conducted under the REACH legislation<\/em>. <\/p>\n And that’s where it hurts \u2013 really hurts.<\/strong><\/p>\n According to the EU Cosmetics Regulation (EC 1223\/2009)<\/em>, animal testing for cosmetics is prohibited. Not just conducting them, but also using data from animal tests as a basis for safety assessments. This ban has existed since 2003<\/strong>. We work with alternative testing methods, under strict supervision, within a legal and ethical framework. <\/p>\n But now it turns out that animal testing has still been carried out on TPO under the REACH legislation \u2013 including for UV printer ink and paints \u2013 and that these results are being used to ban TPO in cosmetics.<\/p>\n Let that sink in.<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n And as if that weren’t absurd enough: 30 humans<\/strong> were also tested by applying and removing TPO three times a week for a month. The result? No irritation or skin reaction whatsoever<\/strong>. <\/p>\n Yet TPO was banned for cosmetic use.<\/p>\n I have serious questions about this. Not just as a chemist. Not just as a distributor. But also as a citizen, professional, and human being<\/strong>. Because this approach \u2013 where a ban based on REACH animal testing is implemented over cosmetics \u2013 undermines the ban on animal testing<\/strong> in our sector. <\/p>\n It seems to be a legal backdoor<\/strong>. A clever way to let animal testing count in cosmetics legislation anyway. And it’s not just legally questionable, it’s fundamentally unfair to everyone who actually<\/em> follows the rules. <\/p>\n That’s why I’ve written an official letter<\/strong> to the European Commission asking for clarification. I have also informed FOD Public Health<\/strong>, the responsible Flemish and federal ministers, and the animal rights organization GAIA<\/strong>. In my letter, I attach the complete report on the animal testing \u2013 which is purely hallucinatory. <\/p>\n Because I have no other choice<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Every day I see colleagues and customers building up their lives and careers after COVID. Who invest in quality, education, and ethics. And then comes this measure, based on an ethically incorrect<\/em> and legally questionable<\/em> precedent, which once again shakes our sector. <\/p>\n Maybe it won’t change anything. And if nobody speaks up, nothing will definitely happen<\/strong>.<\/p>\n As Within Temptation sings:<\/em> I am not an activist. But as long as no one takes up the fight, nothing will change.<\/p>\n Why I Wrote to the European Commission My name is Sofie Devlieger. I am a doctor of chemistry, educator in the beauty industry, and CEO of a wholesale business for professional nail products. Daily, I work with professionals who perform their work with passion, care, and knowledge. People who are trained, who work according to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":828,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":" [et_pb_section fb_built=\"1\" _builder_version=\"4.16\" global_colors_info=\"{}\"][et_pb_row _builder_version=\"4.16\" background_size=\"initial\" background_position=\"top_left\" background_repeat=\"repeat\" global_colors_info=\"{}\"][et_pb_column type=\"4_4\" _builder_version=\"4.16\" custom_padding=\"|||\" global_colors_info=\"{}\" custom_padding__hover=\"|||\"][et_pb_text _builder_version=\"4.27.4\" background_size=\"initial\" background_position=\"top_left\" background_repeat=\"repeat\" global_colors_info=\"{}\"]<\/p> My name is Sofie Devlieger<\/strong>. I hold a PhD in chemistry, I\u2019m an educator in the beauty industry and the CEO of a wholesale company in professional nail products. I work every day with professionals who practise their craft with passion, care, and expertise. People who are trained, who operate under the strictest standards, and who \u2013 like me \u2013 believe in safety, innovation, and ethics<\/strong>.<\/p> Yet I watch with dismay how rules that are supposed to protect us sometimes have the opposite effect<\/strong>.<\/p> Take, for instance, the recent decision by the European Union to ban the ingredient TPO<\/strong> (Trimethylbenzoyl diphenylphosphine oxide) in cosmetics. The reasoning? Results from animal testing<\/strong> conducted under the REACH regulation<\/em>.<\/p> And that\u2019s where it gets problematic \u2013 seriously problematic.<\/strong><\/p> According to the European Cosmetics Regulation (EC 1223\/2009)<\/em>, animal testing for cosmetics is prohibited. Not only carrying it out, but also using animal testing data as a basis for safety assessments. That ban has been in place since 2003<\/strong>. We use alternative testing methods, under strict supervision, within a legal and ethical framework.<\/p> But now it appears that under REACH, animal tests were still conducted on TPO \u2013 including for UV printer inks and paints \u2013 and that these results are now being used to ban TPO in cosmetics.<\/p> Let that sink in.<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote> And if that\u2019s not absurd enough: 30 humans<\/strong> were also tested who had to apply and remove TPO three times a week for a month. The result? No irritation or skin reaction whatsoever<\/strong>.<\/p> Still, TPO was banned for cosmetic use.<\/p> I have serious concerns about this. Not only as a chemist. Not only as a distributor. But also as a citizen, professional, and human being<\/strong>. Because this way of working \u2013 where a ban based on REACH animal tests is rolled out to cosmetics \u2013 undermines the animal testing ban<\/strong> in our industry.<\/p> It feels like a legal backdoor<\/strong>. A clever way to sneak animal testing into cosmetic legislation. And that\u2019s not only legally questionable, it\u2019s fundamentally unfair to everyone who does<\/em> follow the rules.<\/p> That is why I wrote an official letter<\/strong> to the European Commission requesting clarification. I have also informed FPS Public Health<\/strong>, the relevant Flemish and federal ministers, and animal rights organisation GAIA<\/strong>. I attached the full animal testing report to my letter \u2013 and it is truly shocking.<\/p> Because I simply can\u2019t do otherwise<\/strong>.<\/p> Every day I see colleagues and clients rebuilding their lives and careers after COVID. Investing in quality, education, and ethics. And then this measure comes along, based on a morally flawed<\/em> and legally dubious<\/em> precedent, shaking our industry once again.<\/p> Maybe it won\u2019t change anything. And if no one speaks up, nothing will ever change<\/strong>.<\/p> As Within Temptation sings:<\/em> I am not an activist. But as long as no one stands up, nothing will change.<\/p> [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-899","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-action-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tpo-eu.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/899","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tpo-eu.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tpo-eu.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tpo-eu.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tpo-eu.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=899"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/www.tpo-eu.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/899\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1910,"href":"https:\/\/www.tpo-eu.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/899\/revisions\/1910"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tpo-eu.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/828"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tpo-eu.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=899"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tpo-eu.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=899"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tpo-eu.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=899"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
\n
\nWhy Am I Doing this?<\/h3>\n
\nBut maybe it will.<\/em><\/p>\n
\n\u201cSomeone has to take a stand against evil. Why should it not be me?\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\n
\nI am a researcher<\/strong>. An entrepreneur<\/strong>. An educator<\/strong>.
\nBut above all, I am someone who believes in justice, transparency, and responsibility<\/strong>. <\/p>\nTHE TPO SAGA GOES ON…<\/h3>\n
\n\ud83d\udc49 Please Share this Post!<\/h4>\n
\ud83d\udc49 Express your Opinion Too.<\/h4>\n
\ud83d\udc49 Help Ensure that We are Heard!<\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Why I Wrote to the European Commission<\/h2>
Why am I doing this?<\/h3>
But maybe it will.<\/em><\/p>
\u201cSomeone has to take a stand against evil. Why should it not be me?\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>
I am a scientist<\/strong>. An entrepreneur<\/strong>. An educator<\/strong>.
But above all, I am someone who believes in justice, transparency, and responsibility<\/strong>.<\/p>THE TPO SAGA GOES ON\u2026<\/h3>
\ud83d\udc49 Feel free to share this message!<\/h4>
\ud83d\udc49 Speak up as well.<\/h4>
\ud83d\udc49 Help make sure our voices are heard!<\/h4>