It's the sparkle, the je ne sais quoi in your favourite cosmetics. It's the perfect glitter factor that brings your look from day to night or your skin from blah to GORGEOUS!

That shine is derived from Mica, a granite rock from the country of India. While this granite results in the perfect, luxe final result, it is sadly anchored in child slavery. 

No, frankly, it is. We started our Pampered Femme journey on a firm foundation of transparency. We searched for the most natural, organic ingredients focusing on cruelty-free and ethical sourcing and production.  

WHY MICA IS SO POPULAR

We love sparkle…like we REALLLLLLLLY love sparkle. We were so hurt to discover that the shine we all love is most commonly derived from Mica. "Mica minerals are often used as color additives in cosmetics. They also have reflective properties, allowing for a shimmery effect in mineral foundations." - Safe Cosmetics

MICA'S DIRTY SECRET

The supply chain buries the truth about its less than ethical origin, manipulating the shipping process so as to avoid any traces of the child slavery. "Roughly 70% of mica produced in India comes from illegal mines that are totally unregulated by the government." - Refinery29 Not only are the miners paid a measly twenty-eight cents a day, but they are also mainly children, as young as four years old as their tiny frames and hands are well suited to the narrow channels of the mines. The children work tirelessly every single day, doing their best to support their families by mining the Mica. Once they dig it out of the tunnels, they run the Mica through a grate to manually separate the precious commodity from the valueless gravel. Aside from the illegal process of using children to work, it's an insanely dangerous environment. Children suffer from minor injuries; the process affects their lungs, and even a small collapse or shift in the ground results in severe injury and, sadly, death. 

While these families would rather see their children in school or playing, the poverty levels are so severe in those areas that they are bound to this unfortunate situation to live.

WHAT SOME COMPANIES CHOOSE TO DO

There is a strong divide in the opinion of how to solve the Mica mining problem. On the one hand, it makes complete send to ditch the product entirely, especially when you can use synthetic Mica and achieve the same results. Even if we eliminated the demand for Mica, there is still the issue of extreme poverty and unjust working conditions in areas like Jharkhand, India. That is why some companies are making efforts to enrich the lives of those who do the actual mining, raising their wages or working for fair conditions. While these efforts are to be commended, it is a less than slow process and so many continue to be taken advantage of in the name of greed. We invite you to watch this short documentary and make an informed decision about the everyday products you rely on. 

WHAT WE CHOOSE TO DO

Personally, while we endeavour to support families like those seen in the video, we choose to do so without the additive of Mica in our Pampered Femme products. We are opposed to the idea of considering any ingredient or product that comes from such inhumane settings. 

WHAT ABOUT SYNTHETIC MICA?

We also want to avoid the use of any synthetics in our products and therefore we do not use synthetic Mica either. We continue our search for the kindest ingredients while delivering a healthful product that smells amazing and soothes your skin. If you have any feedback, we are always open to your opinions and suggestions. Let us know what products you have opted for in support of fair trade and ethical working conditions. Let us share your example of how you choose to support the causes that mean the most to you. 

Our personal dedication to supporting one another and a healthy planet is not in vain. Let's each do our utmost to change the things that do not belong. We will always do our part to offer transparency in all aspects of Pampered Femme.

TRANSPARENCY IS THE PILLAR OF OUR BRAND

We count on your transparency, as well as your honesty and commitment to a better world. We want to know if you discover any controversial information regarding the ingredients we use in our products. We promise to act on that information and adjust accordingly.

Email your concerns to wecare@pamperedfemme.ca and we will rectify the matter.

xx Tarryn