Summary of the impact

A national UK standard on nano-labelling has been published and an international standard is imminent largely due to the efforts of Professor Geoff Hunt as an applied ethicist in nanotechnology. Hunt became interested in the labelling of nanoproducts when he saw (in 2006) a lack of recognition that nanoscale hazards would affect consumers' right to know. He raised this in his 2006 co-edited book and at a UNESCO workshop in Paris (2007), leading directly to an invitation from Dr Peter Hatto of BSI (UK standardisation body) to lead a world-first initiative on nano-labelling. He continued to steer this project for five years up to International level.