Actress Jessica Alba is the proud owner of a billion dollar business known as The Honest Company. While receiving praise for her efforts in bringing clean and natural products to the homes of parents around the world, not everyone is behind her movement. Alba was smacked with a $5 million lawsuit that claims four of her eco-friendly products from The Honest Company line are "deceptively and misleadingly labeled."
The plaintiff, Jonathan D. Rubin, has filed accusations against Alba and The Honest Company for allegedly not being so honest about the ingredients used to create some of her popular household products (pun intended). Rubin stated that several of the products, specifically the dish soap, diapers, hand soap and multi-surface cleaner, contain "unnatural" ingredients even though they're marketed as having strictly natural ingredients.
"The allegations against us are baseless and without merit," said Alba in a statement posted by Business Insider. "We strongly stand behind our products and the responsibility we have to our consumers. We are steadfast in our commitment to transparency and openness. I know my children, Honor and Haven, are growing up in a safer home because of our products."
What what?! @honest airport kiosks #honestonthego
A photo posted by Jessica Alba (@jessicaalba) on Jul 14, 2015 at 12:52pm PDT
By using the word natural in her products, Rubin expected none of her products to have any evidence of artificial ingredients. He reportedly cited several synthetic preservatives, like Methylisothiazolinone and Phenoxyethanol, inside of the products' makeup. This isn't the first time The Honest Company received backlash for its products. Unhappy customers criticized their sunscreen product for not protecting their skin from the sun, stating the product was ineffective against harmful UV ray exposure.
The 34-year-old actress is standing firmly behind her company and the products they sell. When she started the company, Alba had her children, seven-year-old Honor and four-year-old Haven, in mind. She was inspired to create eco-friendly products for children and families everywhere, because she realized there was a lack of natural based products on the market when she began her family with film producer husband, Cash Warren.
"We believe that consumers deserve to know what's in their products-whether it's diapers for their children, cleaning products for their families or beauty products for themselves," she said. "Our formulations are made with integrity and strict standards of safety, and we label each ingredient that goes into every product-not because we have to, but because it's the right thing to do."
