There is a global outcry against advertisements claiming that wet wipes are flushable, and UK water companies are leading the battle.
According to the water companies, advertisements claiming that these wipes are flushable are misleading the public and resulting in blocked sewers, contributing to floods in people’s homes and in the wider environment.
The UK and nine other countries have signed a declaration outlining the water industry’s current position regarding flushable labelled products. This declaration calls on manufacturers to label their products as non-flushable in the interim until such time that an ISO Flushability Technical Standard has been agreed upon with the water industry.
This pressure from governments and water companies is being brought to bear a mere day before manufacturers global manufacturers are set to meet at an EDANA conference in order to study the latest trends and developments in the personal care and hygiene products industry.
Wessex Water has also laid a complaint with the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) regarding ‘misleading’ wet wipes advertising.
Sarah Mukherjee, Director of Environment at Water UK, said:
“There are strong views from customers and water companies around the world that it is time for the manufacturers to take action to prevent sewer flooding. The financial and emotional cost of a sewer flood in your home is awful and surely it is worth taking every step possible to prevent this happening.”
Water companies In the UK alone have estimated that unblocking sewers clogged up by wipes and hygiene products cost an estimated £90million annually, excluding human and environmental costs and impact.
The problem is that toilets are designed for what is known as “The 3 Ps†– poo, pee and (toilet) paper. This is an international statement which recommends that consumers absolutely must be given clear and unambiguous information regarding appropriate disposal methods of products such as wet-wipes, which are not flushable.
