Transparency in Clean Beauty Certification
The Environmental Working Group (EWG) has long positioned itself as a consumer advocacy group dedicated to reducing toxic exposure from household and personal care products. Its EWG Verified™ mark appears on cosmetics, skin care, and even cleaning products, and is often interpreted by consumers as a strong assurance of safety. But how does the certification actually work? How much does it cost? And what happens when a certified brand is sold or starts manufacturing in a country like China?
Let’s take a closer look at the EWG Verified program—what it really verifies, and where its limitations lie.
What Does It Cost to Be EWG Verified
Becoming EWG Verified is not free. For personal-care products, EWG currently charges a $750 evaluation fee per formulation. The program also charges an annual licensing fee, which varies according to the number of products licensed and the company’s revenue.
EWG says licensing and consulting fees associated with its EWG Verified program are among the organization’s sources of revenue. For consumers evaluating what the EWG Verified mark represents, the financial relationship is useful context: brands pay EWG to have their products evaluated and to license the EWG Verified mark.
That financial relationship does not, by itself, establish whether the certification is independent or effective. The more useful question is what EWG evaluates in exchange for those fees, and what the resulting certification does—and does not—tell consumers about a product.
Does EWG Test the Products?
EWG Verified is not a claim that EWG independently laboratory-tests every product or every batch. Instead, EWG evaluates products against its published criteria, including ingredient disclosure and restrictions. Depending on the formulation, the review can require supporting documentation such as certificates of analysis. EWG also says it has various means of ensuring continued compliance and reserves the right to test products carrying the mark.
The verification process can involve:
- Documentation required to substantiate compliance with EWG’s specific ingredient and product criteria
- Submitted ingredient disclosures
- Supporting formulation and safety documentation
Once reviewed and approved, the product can carry the EWG Verified mark. The verification process focuses on ingredient disclosure and restrictions, product-specific requirements, manufacturing practices, and EWG’s published criteria. It should not be confused with a general-purpose product-quality or efficacy certification.
What Happens When a Brand Is Acquired?
Ownership changes raise a different question: what happens to a product’s verification when the company, manufacturer, or formulation changes?
Take Well People as an example:
- The brand was co-founded by a dermatologist and was among the early adopters of clean, EWG-friendly formulations.
- It carried the EWG Verified™ badge across a number of products.
- In 2020, Well People was acquired by e.l.f. Cosmetics, a mass-market, vegan, and cruelty-free beauty brand known for affordability and large-scale production.
- Following the acquisition, e.l.f. said it transferred all Well People products to its China supply chain.
The relevant question isn’t simply where a product is manufactured. It’s whether a change in ownership, manufacturer, or production process changes anything that EWG’s verification is intended to evaluate—and, if so, how that change is handled.
EWG states that a product’s verification is tied to its approved formulation and that products must be resubmitted for evaluation if the formulation or suppliers change. EWG also says it has mechanisms for ensuring continued compliance and reserves the right to test products carrying the EWG Verified™ mark.
For consumers, that distinction matters. A product may continue to carry the EWG Verified™ label after a change in ownership or manufacturing location, while the question of what has changed—and what remains covered by the verification—may require looking beyond the certification itself.
What EWG Verified Does—and Doesn’t—Establish
The EWG Verified™ mark shouldn’t be mistaken for ongoing batch-level testing or a guarantee of every aspect of a product or company. The verification addresses specific criteria, and understanding those criteria is important when evaluating what the mark actually tells consumers.
For consumers who care deeply about transparency, it’s worth asking:
- Where is this product made today?
- Is the formulation exactly the same as when it was verified?
- Does the brand disclose recent manufacturing or ownership changes?
- What systems are in place to ensure ongoing compliance with clean standards?
Verification vs. Transparency
The EWG Verified™ mark can be a useful guidepost, but it is not a guarantee of ongoing ingredient safety, ethical sourcing, or product performance. As brands grow, change hands, or change their manufacturing arrangements, consumers may need to look beyond the certification itself to understand what has changed and what remains covered by the EWG Verified™ mark.
In a beauty landscape that’s constantly evolving, certifications can provide useful information—but understanding exactly what they cover is essential to evaluating a brand’s broader transparency.
