Clean Label Project is an independent organization focused on education, research, advocacy, and certification—not a testing laboratory. Testing for our reports is conducted by an independent third-party laboratory, which owns the underlying data. Clean Label Project is granted access to analyze that data across products to identify broader category trends, establish meaningful benchmarks, and spotlight products leading the way in helping clean up and advance their categories, but we are not authorized to share individual product-level results.
Our focus is on advancing categories and recognizing what’s working—not singling out products that fall short.
A helpful analogy is a medical practice using patient records to identify population-wide trends and areas of concern without disclosing an individual patient’s records. In the same way, our reports use extensive product testing data to evaluate the category as a whole, establish meaningful benchmarks, and help drive improvements across consumer products.
It helps identify contaminants of concern, establish meaningful benchmarks, and spotlight changemakers—showing both where the category needs to improve and what’s possible.
We know the impact this work can have. Since Clean Label Project’s inception, we have conducted three extensive category analyses of infant formula, including one that contributed to one of the largest infant formula recalls in history. Over that same period, we’ve seen significant improvements across the category.
Today, nearly every major infant formula brand voluntarily submits its products for independent testing through Clean Label Project certification.
As part of our category studies, we recognize the 16 products with the lowest overall contaminant levels through our Clean Sixteen™ list. Not making the Clean Sixteen does not mean a product is unsafe—it simply means it was not among the 16 lowest.
Clean Label Project certification is separate. Brands can voluntarily submit products for independent testing and analysis. Products that meet our certification criteria are recognized as Clean Label Project Certified and listed under our Certified Products tab and in the Clean Label Project app. This is an annual certification which requires brands to submit products for testing and evaluation on an annual basis.
Our goal is to be prescriptive—directing consumers toward products that are raising the bar—because, over more than a decade of work, we have found this to be the most impactful and effective approach for driving meaningful change.
When we identify contaminant levels that are sufficiently concerning to warrant regulatory action, we work with the FDA or appropriate state health agencies to address the issue, including pursuing a recall when warranted.
Rankings can oversimplify complex testing data. A product may have a higher level of one contaminant but lower levels of others, so no single result tells the whole story. It’s similar to a yearly physical: your doctor doesn’t judge your overall health based on one test result. They look at the full picture, including multiple measurements, your history, lifestyle, and other factors.
That’s why we look at the full contaminant profile—not just one result—to assess a product’s overall purity.
For nearly a decade, Clean Label Project (CLP) has partnered with Ellipse Analytics (EA), an independent, ISO/IEC 17025–accredited laboratory specializing in contaminant testing for the products we certify.
EA’s testing and analytical work has been independently validated by accredited third-party laboratories, universities, government agencies, and media organizations. Our findings have also undergone peer review in several instances, providing additional scientific validation of our methodologies and results.
Government agencies—including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), state health departments, and attorneys general offices—have relied on CLP findings and supporting data in regulatory actions, including two major recalls: one involving infant formula and another resulting in the largest pet food recall in history. Our work has also contributed to legislation addressing contaminants in consumer products. CLP is routinely consulted by policymakers, government agencies, industry, and media for our scientific expertise and understanding of contaminants in consumer products.
Peer review is an important component of the scientific process, but it can take considerable time. When our testing identifies contaminants at levels that may warrant public health or safety attention, we believe there is an ethical responsibility to communicate those findings promptly rather than delay disclosure while awaiting publication or peer review.
For nearly a decade, Clean Label Project (CLP) has partnered with Ellipse Analytics (EA), an independent, ISO/IEC 17025–accredited laboratory specializing in contaminant testing for the products we certify. EA’s work has been validated by other accredited third-party laboratories, universities, government agencies, and media organizations. In several instances, our findings have also undergone peer review.
Government agencies have demonstrated such confidence in our findings and supporting data that they used them as a catalyst and foundation for two major recalls—one involving infant formula and another resulting in the largest pet food recall in history. CLP is routinely consulted by policymakers, government agencies, industry, and media for our scientific expertise and understanding of contaminants in consumer products.
Our analysis goes beyond individual contaminant levels. The Clean Label Project Chief Science Officer evaluates thousands of data points to assess each product’s overall contaminant profile. For example, our cat food study included more than 12,000 data points, which were statistically analyzed and incorporated into a comprehensive white paper.
We take a holistic approach—similar to a complete physical rather than a single blood test. A product may have a higher level of one analyte while having lower levels of others, so no single contaminant tells the full story.
We also consider product type, serving size, frequency of consumption, intended consumer population, category benchmarks, and other relevant characteristics to put the results in meaningful context.
We use sales data from sources such as Nielsen, SPINS, and others to identify the products—not brands—that represent approximately 80–90% of sales in a category. We also include products from emerging brands in the category. If you don’t see the product listed, it was not tested in the category study.
Clean Label Project (CLP) partners with an independent third-party laboratory, Ellipse Analytics (EA). EA is ISO 17025* accredited by ANAB. EA’s accreditation encompasses the testing methods and designated product categories outlined in the CLP certification standards.
*ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation is a third-party verification and attestation that the accredited body (in this case, EA for its laboratory) has demonstrated its competence, capability, and impartiality when facilitating its testing under validated and controlled processes, procedures, and methods.
Certification is renewed annually, and products are tested each year as part of the renewal process.
Clean Label Project certified products are tested by Ellipse Analytics using advanced equipment (Agilent and Sciex instruments) and rigorously validated methods.
The Clean Label Project also provides comparison data and regulatory guidelines to help consumers understand the results and see how the product compares to others on the market.
Many labs focus on testing one or two types of products—such as water, soil, produce, or dietary supplements. By analyzing the same materials daily, they build deep expertise in those specific products. However, applying the same methods to a different product type can compromise accuracy if those methods have not been properly validated for that material.
Ellipse Analytics (EA)—the lab used by Clean Label Project—has validated its scope of accreditation for each product category certified under Clean Label Project standards. This ensures that testing methods are appropriate for the specific matrix being analyzed and that results are accurate, relevant, and trustworthy for consumers.
All test results are independently analyzed by two chemists. If results do not meet the thresholds set in our standards, they undergo further review. This includes examining prior test results, checking for other issues within the same batch that could have affected the outcome, and considering any other relevant factors. Results may also be retested to confirm accuracy.
Clean Label Project evaluates products for a broad range of contaminants using recognized standards, including California Proposition 65, European Union guidelines, and proprietary data. Through its testing and research partnership, Clean Label Project has access to the world’s largest consumer packaged goods contaminant database, built from testing thousands of products for hundreds of contaminants over the past decade.
Testing is performed by an ISO 17025-accredited laboratory specializing exclusively in contaminant analysis, with results routinely audited and independently verified. Because product purity cannot be determined by a single contaminant or measurement, our evaluations consider multiple contaminants, benchmarks, product types, serving sizes, and intended consumers.
Products that earn Clean Label Project certification meet our rigorous standards. Testing results represent a snapshot in time, and we do not test every batch of every product.
As part of our category research, the Clean Label Project publishes the Clean 16 — a list recognizing products with the lowest overall levels of contaminants in the category tested.
Not necessarily. The product may not have been part of that specific category review—either because it wasn’t among the top 80–95% of sales used to select products for testing, or because it ranked outside the top 16 despite meeting our contaminant standards. These products may still qualify for, or may already hold, individual certification.
Not necessarily. The Clean 16 are the products that we tested in a category study that showed the lowest overall levels of contaminants.
Category studies are a snapshot in time and typically include the products that represent approximately 80–90% of a category based on sales data. Because the market and product landscape evolve, we revisit and update our categories every few years, either by conducting a new study or updating portions of an existing one.
Brands can also submit their products for testing and evaluation at any time through our certification program. This provides an opportunity for products not included in a category study to be evaluated and potentially certified.
Products are tested, evaluated, and certified individually. Each flavor can have different ingredients as well as different suppliers, packaging and/or manufacturers, so the results can be very different which is why certifications, and placements on our Clean Sixteen lists, are for individual products and not an entire product line.
We obtain products the same way a typical consumer would—by purchasing them directly from retail stores or reputable online sellers. This approach helps ensure the samples reflect what is actually available to the public.
Clean Label Project (CLP) offers several certifications focused on specific contaminants, each based on some of the most rigorous industrial and environmental standards available. Our certification criteria draw from California Proposition 65, European Union regulations, U.S. federal and state requirements, and our proprietary, category-specific data.
Clean Label Project certification takes into account both serving size and daily exposure to industrial and environmental contaminants. Serving size is important because it helps determine how much of a contaminant a person is likely to consume from a product.
Using sugar as an example, a family-size bag of cookies might contain 630 grams of sugar in total — well above the recommended daily limit. However, the stated serving size might be three cookies, which contain about 14 grams of sugar — an amount that falls below the recommended daily limit.
While the objective is to reduce contaminants as much as possible, excluding serving size from the overall analysis can misrepresent actual exposure and potentially cause disproportionate concern.
The difference between parts per million (ppm) and parts per billion (ppb) is exponential: 1 ppm equals 1,000 ppb. These units show how much of a substance is present relative to the total amount—ppm measures larger amounts, while ppb measures much smaller, more diluted quantities.
Think of it as the difference between a drop of food coloring in a backyard swimming pool versus a large lake. The drop is the same, but in the lake it is much more diluted. The drop in the swimming pool represents parts per million (ppm), while the drop in the lake represents parts per billion (ppb). When it comes to the impact on human health, that difference is monumental!
This distinction is important because some blogs, articles, or third parties report results based solely on the Limit of Detection (LoD) rather than the Limit of Quantification (LoQ), which reflects accurate measurement. Reporting values below the LoQ can make the results seem more precise and reliable than they actually are, potentially leading to confusion or misinterpretation of the data.
Ellipse analytics LOQ’s are typically in the low teens to single digit parts per billion (ppb).
While contaminants like pesticides, phthalates, and bisphenols can potentially be eliminated entirely, heavy metals naturally occur in the Earth’s crust, making trace amounts unavoidable. The goal is to minimize all contaminants as much as possible, striving to bring them as close to zero as feasible.
Clean Label Project is supported through a mix of donations, grants, and certification fees from brands that display the CLP mark on products that have been independently tested and evaluated to meet our standards.
Certified organic products typically have lower pesticide levels (though not completely free of them) but can contain higher levels of heavy metals such as lead and arsenic. Non-GMO products generally show no consistent link to higher overall purity. Similarly, retail price across all tested product categories does not correlate with greater purity.
You can read all of our category reports at https://cleanlabelproject.org/category-testing/
You can view all of our Clean 16 lists at https://cleanlabelproject.org/clean-label-project-clean-16/
You can search our database of products at https://cleanlabelproject.org/the-certified-products/ and you can download our Clean Label Project app here:
(Android coming soon!)
Harmful germs—also called pathogens—can contaminate food and make people sick. They can come from bacteria, parasites, viruses, etc. Salmonella, E. coli, Listeria, botulism, and norovirus are just some examples of pathogens commonly associated with outbreaks and serious illness.
In the United States, the FDA and USDA-FSIS regulate pathogen-related food safety. Food manufacturers also rely on independent labs, audits, certification bodies, and consultants. Together, these agencies help protect public health by ensuring steps are taken to prevent outbreaks caused by harmful germs.
But pathogens aren’t the only concern. Food can contain harmful levels of heavy metals, pesticides, phthalates, and other chemicals that are not always regulated or routinely tested. The Clean Label Project (CLP) addresses this gap by evaluating products for these additional contaminants.
To earn and maintain CLP certification, a product must meet—or exceed—FDA pathogen food safety standards and remain in good standing. If a CLP-certified product is recalled in the event of a pathogen outbreak, its certification is suspended and the product is removed from our website.
At this time we are unable to test individual products for consumers.
