When you’re shopping for laundry stain remover, we recommend steering clear of products that contain bleach and borate in favor of those that are hydrogen peroxide-based. Our favorite stain removers are certified by EWG, EPA Safer Choice, and Leaping Bunny or PETA. 

Ingredients

Phosphates

Some of the biggest offenders in stain removers and detergents are phosphates. Excessive use of phosphates may lead to eutrophication, which is the release of excess nutrients into bodies of water. When too many nutrients enter the water, it can lead to a huge increase in algae growth, which can release nasty toxins as it grows that make humans and fish sick. Even worse, these algal blooms can block sunlight from getting to plants in the water, which can lower oxygen levels and suffocate fish. 

Chlorine

When you think of chlorine, you probably think of a swimming pool or the bleach in your laundry room. That’s because it’s widely used to kill bacteria and disinfect. But, it’s also an irritant that, after inhalation, can cause nose, throat, eye, and lung irritation. Although chlorine itself usually does not cause environmental harm, it combines rapidly to form chemicals such as dioxins that pollute water, contaminate fish and transfer to humans and larger animals that eat the fish. No thanks!

Sulfates

Sulfates are aggressive detergents made of sulfur-containing mineral salts. Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) is one of the most common sulfates and is an emulsifying cleaning agent used to break down and wash away the grime that water can’t get rid of on its own. Some research ​​suggests that SLS is an acceptable surfactant for use in household products since it’s considered biodegradable with low potential to accumulate and persist over time in a living organism. Other research indicates that, while it may not be life threatening to human health, it happens to be a highly toxic threat to aquatic life, from algae to frogs to fish. The World Health Organization states that SLS “...is toxic to aquatic organisms. It is strongly advised not to let the chemical enter into the environment.” When in doubt, either opt for sulfate-free or choose a product that has a verified third-party certification to ensure appropriate irritant testing and safety measures were taken in the product's formulation. Note: keep your eye on ingredient labels. Anything that starts with ‘sodium’ and ends in ‘-ate’ is very likely a sulfate.

Fragrances

Fragrances are highly elusive ingredients because they are protected from disclosure. While “fragrance” might appear to be one ingredient on the label, that word could potentially comprise hundreds of chemical compounds just for one scent! These fragrances often include phthalates. Phthalates enable fragrances to become soluble and are known endocrine disruptors in both humans and aquatic life and can even lower the production of testosterone. Studies have found that prenatal exposure to phthalates can decrease mental and motor development in children. Doesn’t strike us as the kind of thing we’d want to use to “sanitize” our baby’s linens, so look for “fragrance-free” or “phthalate-free” labels.

Packaging

Liquid (Plastic Bottles)

Liquid stain remover tends to come in a spray bottle that's typically made out of either Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE), High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE), Polypropylene (PP), Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET). Whichever short-form acronym you land on – at the end of the day, it’s plastic. While some of these, like PET and HDPE, have decent recycling rates in the U.S. at 30%, they are still derived from petroleum (aka oil from fossil fuels). To extract oil, we need to drill and frack, which both have a host of negative environmental consequences (*cough*, oil spills, *cough*) that are not infrequent and can devastate already fragile wildlife populations. We encourage you to opt for bottles that use post-consumer recycled content to reduce the demand to source more petroleum-based plastic.

Powder (Plastic Tubs)

Powder stain remover is usually sold in a wide plastic tub. It’s hard to compare which packaging (bottle or tub) might use more plastic, but if we assume they’re equal, powder stain remover is lighter than liquid (liquid detergent's main ingredient is water), which means that it creates fewer emissions during transport. 

Certifications

Here are some certifications to look for when shopping this category.

‍