April 06, 2009

SDA Perspective on Legislation to Ban Phosphate In Automatic Dishwashing Detergents

You may have been reading news stories about legislative efforts at the state and federal levels to ban the use of phosphorus in household automatic dishwasher detergents.

Here is The Soap and Detergent Association’s (SDA) perspective on this issue:

• Consumers continue to have access to a variety of automatic dishwasher detergents (ADDs) that clean their dishes.
• In several state legislatures, SDA successfully advocated for uniform legislation that banned retail sales of ADD products containing the ingredient phosphate, allowing for smooth marketplace transition to no-phosphate products, effective July 2010 (in July 2008, a ban on retail sales went into effect in three Washington State jurisdictions). Consumer purchases and use of ADDs containing phosphates is not being targeted.
• Phosphates in ADDs used in commercial, industrial and institutional dishwashers – which differ significantly from most household machines – are not affected by these laws. Effective commercial dishwashing is critically important to maintaining public health standards and preventing the spread of food-borne illness.

BACKGROUND:

In January 2006, SDA and its members reached an agreement with the Washington State Legislature to limit the amount of phosphorus in automatic dishwashing detergents (ADDs) for home use to 0.5%, considered to be virtual elimination, effective July 1, 2010.

In the ensuing three years, SDA members who produce automatic dishwasher detergents (ADD) for the home have conducted research and development for the new products, readjusted manufacturing facilities, realigned their ingredient supply chain, begun the introduction of the new products and planned for the exchange of new product for the old at the retail level to ensure as seamless a transition as possible.

This is a nationwide commitment on the industry’s part and will occur even in those areas where the phosphorus content in ADD is not restricted. The same transition is also being undertaken in Canada.

The first of the new no-phosphorus products by mass marketers have begun to appear in stores and are proof of the industry’s commitment to its pledge. The transition being undertaken is significant and poses complex logistical challenges. For these reasons, a uniform effective date is essential to its success.

No new restrictions have been placed on the use of phosphorus in commercial automatic dishwashing and other industrial and institutional uses. Effective commercial dishwashing is critically important to maintaining public health standards and preventing the spread of food-borne illness.

Automatic dishwashing in institutional settings such as hospitals, nursing homes, universities, hotels, restaurants, and food and beverage processing plants plays a significant role in assuring public health standards which citizens have come to expect.

These public health-focused conditions result in a washing environment that differs significantly from that found in home dishwashing machines. The machines used in these settings use shorter wash and rinse cycles and higher temperatures in order to ensure that table and dinnerware are sanitized, while allowing them to handle greater workloads in stressful cleaning situations.

These factors make the continued use of phosphorus for these uses critical. Also, these uses do not have a significant effect on the overall level of phosphorous in the environment.

For more information, visit the SDA Science website page on phosphate, at www.sdascience.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=50&Itemid=61