Coca-Cola and Pepsi promote their products through exclusive marketing agreements called “pouring rights” contracts from 124 or 87 percent of the 143 public universities in the United States with at least 20,000 students. A new study looked at 38 contracts that had enough information to assess their overall value to the universities. Read more →

Strawberries, spinach, and leafy greens are again the top offenders on the Dirty Dozen list developed by the Environmental Working Group or EWG. The EWG analyzes data on pesticide-contaminated fresh fruits and vegetables, based on the latest tests by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Food and Drug Administration. Pesticide... Read more →

There’s no doubt about it. Everyone – governments, organizations, and the public – needs to do more to slow down climate change. I remember well the first Earth Day in 1970. A river in Cleveland bursting into flames when oil-soaked debris in the water ignited. Read more →

Dollar Tree is recalling about 1,025,000 Crafter’s Square glue guns in the United States and 21,900 in Canada. The glue gun can malfunction when plugged in, posing fire and burn risks. Dollar Tree has received seven reports of electrical malfunctions when using the glue guns. Read more →

A scorecard ranking PFAS policy commitments from leading retail and apparel brands shows that Levi Strauss & Co. earned the highest mark for already eliminating PFAS from its supply chain. However, brands such as Macy’s Inc., Nordstrom, Costco, and others received low or failing marks. Read more →

Almost half of skin lightening creams tested contained dangerously high levels of mercury but continue to be sold by online retailers such as Amazon, eBay, and Flipkart, according to a report from the Zero Mercury Working Group, an international coalition. Read more →

Protect your kids, teens, and elders from poisonings by locking up potentially harmful household products and medications. Nearly nine out of 10 unintentional poisonings occur in the home. Thirty-one children under the age of five die in the U.S. each year from consumer products found in the home Read more →

Since I wrote an article recently on the top consumer and personal finance stories of 2021, I was interested in a list offered by U.S. PIRG on the progress made in health, climate, and consumer issues in 2021. U.S. PIRG, a public interest research group, and its state partners worked on or supported many of these issues. Read more →

Walmart is being charged with illegal disposal of hazardous waste by the California Attorney General’s Office and 12 district attorneys. For six years, Walmart violated the state's environmental laws by disposing of hazardous waste products at local landfills that aren’t equipped or authorized to receive this waste. Read more →

The Food and Drug Administration has banned the use of toxic lead acetate in consumer hair dyes, an action that will help protect the public from hazardous chemicals. Lead acetate is the ingredient that slowly darkens gray hair when used every few days and can increase the level of lead in users’ bodies. Read more →