No more sunny days for Australian tanning industry

William Atkins
Friday, 29 August 2008 19:42

Science - Health

An August 2008 ruling by an Australian federal court judge now makes it a requirement for the tanning industry to post warnings of the health problems, including skin cancer, associated with artifical tanning in tanning salons.


On Friday, August 29, 2008, Justice Ray Finkelstein, of Melbourne, ordered Australia’s tanning industry, including tanning franchises and the Australian Tanning Association, to abide by a new government ruling that requires public notices in all tanning salons and on tanning-related Internet sites about the damage that artificial tanning inflicts on skin in the form of skin cancer.

Information on Judge Finkelstein is found at “Judge will call his own shots.”

Fox News reports, “In what some in Australia have hailed as a major victory for consumers, the country's tanning industry has for the first time admitted that tanning salons can damage the skin and cause cancer.” [Fox News: “Australian tanning salons required to post cancer warning”]

Fox adds, “The move is also considered a win for supporters of Australian Clare Oliver, who died in September last year at the age of 26 after losing her long battle against cancer she said was caused by her visits to tanning salons. Oliver spent the last months of her life campaigning against salons and warning the public against using them.”

The ruling by Finkelstein, which came on August 21, 2008, in the Federal Court of Australia, came in response to a lawsuit by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) against the Australian Tanning Association and the tanning organizations Body Bronze (Body Bronze International Pty Ltd) and Tropical Sun (Tropical Sun Industries Pty Ltd).

Page two continues to tell more about the lawsuit and the ruling.