27: Ingredient Transparency: In-Depth with a P&G Scientist

This episode is a departure from our usual focus on small- to mid-sized eco-friendly consumer brands and likely a surprise to listeners who have doubts about the integrity of many corporate giants.

However, the Healthy Home Hacks podcast aims to bring you honest conversations where no conversation is off-limits. We’ve shed light in prior episodes on plant-based household cleaning brands as well as do-it-yourself nontoxic recipes and, today, are sharing an intimate, in-depth conversation and a sneak peek into what is going on in terms of ingredient transparency, sustainability, the science behind the formulations and what the future looks like for Procter & Gamble, the largest manufacturer of consumer goods in the world.

Our special guest is Morgan Brashear. Morgan is a Senior Scientific Communications Manager for the US Home Care Brand at Procter & Gamble. We dive deep into indoor air quality and discuss something called malodors and the negative effects of these, physically and psychologically. Morgan explains what a signature scent means for every home. She also illustrates P&G’s efforts towards ingredient transparency and how, since 2017, P&G publishes its fragrance ingredients down to 0.01percent for all fragranced products in the US and Canada on their website via a platform called SmartLabel in North America. Morgan explains the ‘red list’ on the P&G website that reveals the ingredients common to the ‘fragrance’ label that the company does not use. We tackle the differences between synthetic and natural fragrances, how P&G uses one hundred percent natural propellants versus aerosols, the healthiest options in the P&G line, and their sustainable efforts - including recycled containers and 100 percent renewable electricity in North America, Canada, and Western Europe.

Morgan explains how P&G’s products are a reflection of consumer demand and if we wish to see more fragrance-free, natural, or eco-friendlier products, it’s up to each one of us to demand them by voting with our dollar. Discover their light or fragrance-free product versions as well as their many plant-based options which are perfect for allergy sufferers.