Phenoxyethanol

Phenoxyethanol is a preservative. It helps prevent bacteria and mould growing in a cosmetic after opening. In Europe, it is permitted at up to 1%; in 2016, the European Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety considered it safe at that concentration, including for children.

The reasoning behind that answer matters. A national health agency had raised a specific concern, which led to further assessment.

What it does inside the product

Cosmetics containing water can provide conditions in which microorganisms grow. A suitable preservation system helps prevent contamination during use. The concern is what may grow in the product and then be applied to the face.

Phenoxyethanol serves this preservation role. The European CosIng database lists two functions, antimicrobial and preservative. In this context, the target is microorganisms that could grow inside the product. It supports the formula’s microbiological stability rather than providing a promised cosmetic treatment for the skin.

Why there is a 1% limit

Annex V of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 lists preservatives permitted in European cosmetics. Phenoxyethanol is entry 29, with a maximum permitted concentration of 1.0%.

Read that figure for what it is: the legal maximum for this preservative in cosmetics. The limit defines a permitted condition of use; it is not a general ranking of ingredients as good or bad.

The concern and the resulting assessment

In 2012, the French agency ANSM submitted a risk assessment to the European Commission with a specific concern. It proposed reducing the limit to 0.4% in cosmetics for children under three and avoiding it entirely in products for the nappy area. Other Member States raised similar observations.

This was a formal request from a national health agency to tighten an existing rule.

The question went through assessment. Industry submitted a dossier supporting 1%, and the evidence was reviewed by the Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety, the Commission’s independent scientific body. Opinion SCCS/1575/16, adopted on 6 October 2016, concluded that 2-phenoxyethanol is safe as a preservative at a maximum concentration of 1.0%.

The committee addressed children specifically. It recognised that exposure below age three may be higher than in adults, calculated safety margins for that scenario and found values around 50, against a required minimum of 25. That 25 needs context: the usual reference value is 100, reduced here because molecule-specific toxicokinetic data lowered the uncertainty needing to be covered. The document explains this decision, which matters when interpreting the comparison. The resulting conclusion includes newborns and infants. The opinion was adopted without minority opinions.

What that opinion does not say

The document includes an important limitation: its assessment does not account for exposure from sources other than cosmetics. Its scope is cosmetic use.

As with any ingredient, an individual reaction remains possible. A safety assessment describes risk across a population; it does not guarantee how one person’s skin will respond.

Where to find it on the label

It appears as Phenoxyethanol, usually near the end of the list because preservatives are used at low concentrations. Ingredient order gives limited information here: ingredients above 1% follow descending order, while those below 1% may appear in any order. Since phenoxyethanol is permitted at up to 1%, its exact position near the end cannot tell you its precise concentration.

For a full explanation of ingredient order and the 1% threshold, see our guide to reading an INCI list. Use the INCI analyser to explore a complete label.

Sources: CosIng, European Commission. Opinion SCCS/1575/16 of 6 October 2016. Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009, Annex V, entry 29.