EWG's Guide to Healthy Cleaning | COPERNICIA CERIFERA (CARNAUBA) WAX

EWG's Guide to
Healthy Cleaning

Discover EWG VERIFIED^®

GET UPDATES DONATE

HAZARD SCORE RANGE

HOW WE DETERMINE SCORES LEARN MORE ABOUT EWG VERIFIED®

HOME / INGREDIENTS / Copernicia cerifera (carnauba) wax

COPERNICIA CERIFERA (CARNAUBA) WAX

SEARCH PRODUCTS

Find Products With This Ingredient

COMMONLY FOUND IN

cleaner, wood (furniture/floor) cleaner, wood (furniture/floor) wax/polish/treatment, wood (furniture/floor) cleaner, leather wax/polish, wood (furniture only)

SYNONYMS

COPERNIIA CERIFERA WAX, COPERNICA CERIFERA WAXES, CARNAUBA WAXES, WAXES, COPERNICA CERIFERA, WAXES, CARNAUBA, COPERNICIA CERIFERA WAX, COPERNICIA CEREFERA WAX, CARNAUBA, BRAZIL WAX, COPERNICIA CERIFERA (CARNAUBA) WAX

Common Concerns

See how this product scores for common concerns.

No Data

Asthma / Respiratory
No Data

Skin Allergies & Irritation
No Data

Developmental & Reproductive Toxicity
No Data

Cancer
No Data

Environment

Top Scoring Factors

Low concern for general systemic/organ effects; developmental/endocrine/reproductive effects

Ingredient concerns

CONCERNS

Health Issue	Level of Concern	Source

This substance caused an allergic reaction in a human case study.

some

Fuad Alrowaishdi, Sophie Colomb, Bernard Guillot & Nadia Raison-Peyron. 2013. Allergic contact cheilitis caused by carnauba wax in a lip balm. Contact dermatitis 69(5), 318-9.

This substance is Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) as a food additive by the US Food and Drug Administration

Only in: Household Cleaners

low

U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA): FDA - Priority based Assessment of Food Additive (PAFA)

The European Food Safety Authority reports this substance did not cause developmental or reproductive effects at the highest dose tested.

Only in: Food Scores®

low

European Food Safety Authority. 2012. Scientific Opinion on the re-evaluation of carnauba wax (E 903) as a food additive. EFSA Journal 2012;10(10):2880.

Understanding scores

EWG provides information on cleaning product ingredients from the published scientific literature, to supplement incomplete data available from companies and the government. The ratings indicate the relative level of concern posed by exposure to the ingredients in this product - not the product itself - compared to other product formulations. The ratings reflect potential health hazards but do not account for the level of exposure or individual susceptibility, factors which determine actual health risks, if any.

HOW WE DETERMINE SCORES

Hazard score

The Healthy Cleaning ingredient hazard score, from A to F, reflects known and suspected hazards linked to the ingredients. The EWG VERIFIED^® mark means a product meets EWG’s strictest criteria for transparency and health.