The FDA’s list of ‘toxic’ hand sanitizers has grown to 67. Some were sold at Walmart
Tuesday’s addition of eight hand sanitizers made by Real Clean Distribuciones put the FDA’s list of hand sanitizers that have or might have methanol at 67.
And some of that hand sanitizer was sold at Walmarts in 17 states and the District of Columbia and, in May, at Costco.
A hand sanitizer made the list, the agency said, by either testing as having methanol or being, in the FDA’s words “purported to be made in the same facility” as one that tested as having methanol.
“Methanol, or wood alcohol, is a substance that can be toxic when absorbed through the skin or ingested and can be life-threatening when ingested,” the FDA says. “Methanol is not an acceptable active ingredient for hand sanitizers and must not be used due to its toxic effects.
“FDA’s investigation of methanol in certain hand sanitizers is ongoing.”
So far, that investigation has flagged only hand sanitizers made in Mexico, starting with Eskbiochem in June. Four more manufacturers’ hand sanitizers were added early this month and the rest have been added within the last week.
Some hand sanitizer distributors acceded to the FDA’s recall requests, the most notable being 4e Brands’, a San Antonio, Texas-based distributor of 4E Global, recall of Blumen Advanced Instant Hand Sanitizer Clear; Blumen Advanced Hand Sanitizer; Blumen Clear Advanced Hand Sanitizer; Blumen Clear Lear Advanced Hand Sanitizer; and Blumen Aloe Advanced Hand Sanitizer with 70% Alcohol.
The 4e Brands Blumen hand sanitizer recall covers 213 lots, some of which went to Walmarts in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and West Virginia. The exact list of stores in those states can be found here.
Costco posted a notice that Blumen Advanced Hand Sanitizer in 33.8-ounce bottles sold from May 12 through May 18 with lot Nos. 2372, 2373, 2374, 2894 and 2895 have been recalled.
Also recalled were all 16.9-ounce bottles of Soluciones Cosmeticas’ Bersih Hand Sanitizer Gel Fragrance Free, which the FDA said tested positive for methanol.
Click here for the full FDA list. Additions over the last 10 days have been (read carefully as some of the names are :
▪ 4e Global’s Blumen Clear Advanced Hand Sanitizer with 70% Alcohol; Blumen Advanced Instant Hand Sanitizer Clear Ethyl Alcohol 70% and Blumen Advanced Instant Hand Sanitizer Clear tested as having methanol.
Other Blumen brands, Hello Kitty by Sanario; The Honeykeeper; Klar and Danver; Greenbrier International; and Assured brands were on the list by association of facility with the above brands.
▪ AAA Cosmetica recalled all 22 lots of bio aaa Advance Hand Sanitizer in 480 mL bottles Tuesday. The FDA says it tested as having methanol.
Lumiskin and QualitaMed brands already were on the list. All three were on an Import Alert list to stop them from coming into the United States.
▪ DDI Multinacional’s Earths Amenities Instant Unscented Hand Sanitizer with Aloe Vera Advanced tested as having methanol and was stopped at the border.
Also on the methanol warning list as well as the import alert list from DDI are Hand Sanitizer Agavespa Skincare and Vidanos Easy Cleaning Rentals Hand Sanitizer Agavespa Skincare.
▪ Limpo Quimicos’ Andy’s Best tested as having methanol. Made at the same facility were Andy’s, Gelclor, NeoNatural and Plus Advanced.
▪ Liqesa Exportacion, also known as Liq-E.S.A. de CV saw its Optimus Lubricants Instant Hand Sanitizer fail the FDA’s methanol test.
▪ Maquiladora Miniara’s Shine and Clean Hand Sanitizer and Selecto Hand Sanitizer both tested as having methanol.
▪ Real Clean Distribuciones‘ Born Basic. Anti-Bac Hand Sanitizer tested as having methanol.
The Real Clean products on the list from possibly being made at the same facility include Anti-Bac Hand Sanitizer; Calvalry; Scent Theory-Keep It Clean-Pure Clean Anti-Bacterial Hand Sanitizer; Enliven; Lux Eoi; and Keep It Clean.
▪ Yara Elena De La Garza Perez Nieto’s Daesi tested as having methanol.
This story was originally published July 15, 2020 at 9:27 AM with the headline "The FDA’s list of ‘toxic’ hand sanitizers has grown to 67. Some were sold at Walmart."
