Eastman and the environmental non-profit GreenBlue announced that Eastman's 168 SG non-phthalate plasticizer has been approved for listing in GreenBlue's CleanGredients database.

Eastman 168 SG is the first plasticizer to be listed in CleanGredients that meets the criteria of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Safer Choice program (www.epa.gov/saferchoice). All current ingredient listings have been specific to cleaning products, but Eastman 168 SG presents a new category of CleanGredients not specific to cleaning applications, thus broadening the reach of the Safer Choice program into new industries and applications.

"We recognize the importance of customers sourcing safe and sustainable products," says Scott Boito, regulatory and advocacy manager for plasticizers at Eastman Chemical Company. "Proactively evaluating Eastman 168 against the Safer Choice criteria was a priority to ensure our customers and future customers know they can depend on Eastman for reliable and trusted products."

"We find it encouraging that a company like Eastman is proactively assessing its products against EPA's objective and widely recognized criteria for green chemistry" says James Ewell, senior director of sustainable materials at GreenBlue. "We are getting inquiries from other companies who have developed safer alternatives but are lacking a consistent method of evaluation as well as trusted outlets to market their products. CleanGredients can be a resource for these manufacturers."

Eastman 168 SG is a non-phthalate plasticizer, and is globally recognized and accepted by competent authorities, regulatory agencies, and private organizations as an excellent alternative to phthalates in applications such as flooring, wallcoverings, toys, medical devices, and many other applications that require flexible vinyl. Eastman 168 SG can also be used in some waterborne adhesives and in some rubber formulations, and has several US FDA and European food-contact clearances in adhesive and plastics applications.