Dove, Tresemme dry shampoos cause cancer; Should Indian consumers worry? Check what Unilever says

Unilever Dry Shampoo Recall: According to reports, the products were recalled in US and Canada and were produced before October 2021.

Last week, Unilever's Indian subsidiary Hindustan Unilever Ltd had reported a 22.19 per cent increase in its consolidated net profit to Rs 2,670 crore for the September quarter.

Unilever recently recalled 19 popular aerosol dry shampoos from the United States market after it was found that the shampoos contain a chemical called Benzene and may cause cancer. Unilever maintained that it recalled the shampoos out of caution as no adverse effect was reported. The recall order came after the US Food and Drug Administration’s observation and covers products like Nexxus, Suave and Tigi which makes Rockaholic and Bed Head dry shampoos. Benzene is often termed as a human carcinogen and may cause cancers including leukaemia and blood cancer of the bone marrow.

However, since the Dove and Tresemme shampoos are widely used in India, should Indians worry?

According to Hindustan Unilever, the Indian arm of Unilever Plc, “HUL does not manufacture or sell dry shampoos in India. Unilever U.S. and Canada voluntarily recalled select lot codes of dry shampoo produced prior to October 2021 out of abundant caution, after an internal investigation identified elevated levels of benzene. An independent health hazard evaluation concluded that levels of benzene detected do not pose a health risk.”

According to Unilever, the recalled products were produced before October 2021. The company has also notified retailers to pull the affected products from shelves.

The recalled products include Dove Dry Shampoo Volume and Dullness, Dove Dry Shampoo Fresh Coconut, Dove Dry Shampoo Invisible, Dove Dry Shampoo Detox and Purify, Dove Dry Shampoo Fresh and Floral, Dove Dry Shampoo Ultra Clean, Dove Dry Shampoo Clarifying Charcoal, Dove Dry Shampoo Go Active, TRESemmé Dry Shampoo Volumizing, TRESemmé Dry Shampoo Fresh and Clean and TRESemmé Pro Pure Dry Shampoo among others.

Meanwhile, the FMCG major Unilever said yesterday that it has witnessed strong growth in the Indian market in the July-September quarter of FY23. The company said that it has achieved USG (Underlying sales growth) of 16.1 per cent in India in the third quarter. Unilever's turnover for Q3 was at 15.8 billion euros and its USG accelerated to 10.6 per cent in the quarter.

Last week, Unilever's Indian subsidiary Hindustan Unilever Ltd had reported a 22.19 per cent increase in its consolidated net profit to Rs 2,670 crore for the September quarter, mainly helped by volume growth and market gains.

(With agency inputs)