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Earlier this week it was learned that the megalith outdoor manufacturer, The North Face, is being sued by the Environmental Protection Agency for making unsubstantiated public heath claims regarding some anti-bacterial products they use in their shoes. The substance at note is AgION silver, a hot new technology that has been rapidly spreading throughout the industry; widely incorporated into socks, shoes, baselayers, hats, and pretty much anything else that has the potential to stink.
In this case, it’s not so much that the EPA is concerned about the veracity of the claim, it’s that they haven’t said tested it yet for themselves. According to the EPA, anything that claims to kill bacteria is technically a “pesticide,” and apparently AgION silver is unregistered and hence violates the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act.
It’s interesting that the EPA is taking aim at The North Face and not the actual manufacturer of the chemical or the dozens of other companies that use and market AgION silver as well. I’m going to go ahead and say it has something to do with the fact that TNF is a multi-billion dollar company and the other targets aren’t worth their money or public statement; if you’re gonna put the resources into suing someone, might as well make sure they can pay up worth a damn.
Singling out the big guys for issues relating to dubious public health claims isn’t new. Back a year or two ago with the whole Bisphenol A (aka BPA) thing blew up in water bottles, everyone took aim at Nalgene despite the fact hundreds of other companies used the substance and that The National Institutes of Health, has said there is "limited evidence that bisphenol A has adverse effects on development." (The FDA or EPA has yet to find a legitimate reason to ban the substance.) The dirty little fact is that BPA is the lining in every tin can you purchase on the grocery shelf—something to think about next time you buy soup, beans, etc.
So good luck TNF. I’m sure you’ll make it through this one alive, but it sucks to be your PR department right now. For everyone else out there who uses AgION silver in their products, you ducked the bullet this time.
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Kate said on September 25, 2009 at 4:57 PM
Interesting story but a little too anecdotal. Didn't Paul teach you anything?
Baby bottle companies are still getting dragged over the coals much worse than Nalgene ever did for BPA but I suppose you have to have plethora of little babies to know or care about that.
And why would the EPA go after the chemical manufacturers when they are not the ones making public claims? The BPA drama didn't involve the manufacturers of BPA but the companies that used it.
And finally, wouldn't you be pissed if the EPA was bankrupting your favorite, less-well known company that couldn't afford legal fees? Sure, it isn't right to only go after the big guy, but you would be using entirely different arguments that would play better to people's emotions (and thereby losing sight of the whole issue) if the government was killing little businesses that might only use the chemical and claim in one product instead of all of North Face's multiple lines.
That said, this will be interesting to watch.