The National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) interrupted the sale of a beauty product distributed by the company Progressiva Orgânica. The cosmetic, a hair straightener, was available on the market without due regulatory permission and even displayed registration information from a different company on its packaging.
The specific item is “Bottox Amazon Therapy Natuvegan”, widely advertised and sold by Progressiva Orgânica on the internet, with the promise of a smoothing effect. However, the data recorded on the labeling belonged to Maria das Graças Oliveira da Silva ME, who denied any involvement with the manufacture of the product when consulted by the regulatory agency.
Given the irregularities found, Anvisa imposed a total ban on the product, including its sale, distribution, manufacture, advertising and use.
Informally known as hair botox, the product, despite promoting itself as a natural alternative, works as a straightener. For consumer safety, Anvisa offers a search feature on its official portal that allows you to check the validity of the registration of any cosmetic before purchasing, an essential tool to avoid irregular products.
Understand how the registration fraud scheme worked
In Brazil, all cosmetics require registration or notification with Anvisa before being released to the public. This requirement is essential to ensure that the formulation has undergone rigorous evaluations and that the manufacturer can be identified in any situation of possible problem.
In this episode, the federal agency detected a maneuver to circumvent the inspection system. The straightener was distributed by a company without due regulation, but had the registration number of a third company on the label. This practice created a facade of legality, deceiving the buyer about the true situation of the product on the market. Fraudulent use of another company’s data prevents tracking of the actual manufacturer in the event of adverse reactions or health problems, making it difficult for consumers to hold themselves accountable and seek redress.
This type of fraud represents a considerable risk to users, as the packaging does not offer support for the consumer to identify that the product has not passed mandatory security controls and assessments.