In July 2020, consumers were shocked to learn that many of the hand sanitizer products sold in the US were made with high levels of methanol. The FDA immediately began recalling those products that tested with over 1% methanol and those that were proven to contain other contaminants. The FDA regulates sanitizers sold in the US and requires the products to be properly labeled and contain at least 60% ethyl alcohol or 70% isopropyl alcohol to kill germs, viruses, and bacteria on hands. Ethanol typically provides the alcohol base for hand sanitizers. But, it was discovered that 85 out of the 86 products listed on the FDA’s hand sanitizer recall list contained high levels of methanol. As an over-the-counter drug product, hand sanitizers must meet strict FDA regulations. This includes the use of United States Pharmacopeia (USP) Grade ethanol that is tested for purity. Methanol is allowed to be present in manufactured hand sanitizers, but only at extremely low levels. With a spike i
