ACI Launches New Ingredient Communication Tool

The American Cleaning Institute (ACI) previewed the launch of a new ingredient communication tool, ‘What Cleaning Ingredients Do,’ designed to enhance consumer understanding through greater transparency and building trust with consumers.

The tool, outlined during ACI’s Mid-Year Meeting in Washington D.C., was developed by ACI’s Future Leaders, representatives of a cross-section of cleaning product manufacturers and chemistry producers. The resource was presented at ACI’s Mid-Year Meeting by Future Leaders Chair Kristin Cordz, Market Actives, LLC, and Vice Chair Bryan Parrish, The Clorox Company.

“‘What Cleaning Ingredients Do’ is a simple, searchable database of 800+ chemical ingredients commonly found in household cleaners to promote consumer understanding with consistent consumer-tested ingredient function descriptions,” says Cordz.

“Leveraging these ingredient terms and functions provides a pivotal opportunity for standardized industry language, applicable across brand and product websites, education resources and packaging.”

The effort was praised by Melissa Hockstad, ACI president & CEO, who noted that it would address the gap between required ingredient disclosure and a consumers’ right to understand and be able to make informed decisions.

“This tool allows product formulators, developers, and marketers to proactively help shape a better standard of consumer understanding of the role ingredients play in helping to make everyday cleaning products safe, beneficial, and effective. Enhanced understanding helps empower consumers to feel more confident with the products they have chosen to use in their homes.”

The database tool will initially be rolled out for ACI member companies in the weeks ahead, with the goal of being used to align ongoing updates they are making on ingredient functions through product websites or apps like SmartLabel. Further development plans are underway for expanding the roll out to other stakeholders.