La Roche-Posay class action claims benzoyl peroxide products contain benzene

La Roche-Posay class action overview: 

• Who: Plaintiff Kayla Mraz filed a class action lawsuit against La Roche-Posay parent company L’Oreal. 
• Why: The class action claims La Roche-Posay benzoyl peroxide acne treatment contains benzene, a human carcinogen.
• Where: The La Roche-Posay benzene class action was filed in federal court in New York.

Parent company L’Oreal faces a class action lawsuit claiming the company sells La Roche-Posay benzoyl peroxide (BPO) acne treatments that contain the human carcinogen benzene.

La Roche-Posay’s Effaclar Duo Acne Spot Treatment does not acknowledge the presence of benzene or include it on a list of ingredients, the class action alleges.

Benzene, a primary solvent found in petroleum and primarily used in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries, has been linked to leukemia and other cancers, according to the class action.

In 2023, independent laboratory Valisure took a representative sample that showed BPO products contained benzene levels many times higher than allowed in any regulated drug, the La Roche-Posay class action claims.

“Valisure’s detection of benzene and other carcinogens has been independently confirmed by the industry and led to recalls by manufacturers over the subject products,” the class action says.

La Roche-Posay benzoyl peroxide products contain high levels of benzene, class action says

Valisure’s testing showed the La Roche-Posay benzoyl peroxide had benzene levels of more than 100 parts per million (ppm) after 10 days, 175 ppm after 14 days and 150 ppm after 18 days, the lawsuit says.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration allows 2 ppm of benzene in a product if its use is unavoidable in the manufacturing process. 

“Defendant could have avoided any potential for benzene contamination in the BPO Products by changing the manufacturing process or raw ingredients, and the BPO Products could have been sold with absolutely no benzene in them,” the class action claims.

L’Oreal faces other class action lawsuits over benzene in its benzoyl peroxide acne treatments, including a lawsuit in Hawaii federal court.

Have you purchased La Roch-Posay benzoyl peroxide acne treatments? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiff is represented by Steven Sukert, Jeff Ostrow and Kristen Lake Cardoso of Kopelowitz Ostrow PA and with James E. Cecchi, Jason H. Alperstein, Donald E. Ecklund and Kevin Cooper of Carella, Byrne, Cecchi, Olstein, Brody and Agnello P.C.

The La Roche-Posay benzene class action lawsuit is Mraz v. L’Oreal USA Inc., Case No. 1:24-cv-01974, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Read About More Class Action Lawsuits & Class Action Settlements:

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• Unilever to pay $2M settlement in Suave deodorant benzene class action
• Johnson & Johnson class action alleges benzoyl peroxide acne products contain benzene