New EU project to enforce chemicals in products offered online
Photo: F. Muhammad via Pixabay
New EU project to enforce chemicals in products offered online – ECHA’s Enforcement Forum agreed to launch an EU-wide project to verify whether products offered online comply with REACH restrictions and the requirements of the Classification, Labeling and Packaging (CLP) Regulation. The Biocidal Products Regulation Subgroup (BPRS) agreed to launch a project on biocidal product labeling.
Inspections in this REACH-EN-FORCE (REF)-13 project will take place in 2025. The goal is to verify that products sold online comply with REACH restrictions. These include products such as toys, common household items and chemicals. Inspectors will also check whether mixtures are classified, labeled and packaged according to CLP. This is because products offered online must also contain the required information about the hazards of the mixture. Inspectors can also check for compliance with restrictions under the Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) Regulation and the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directive.
High non-compliance rate
The online sale of chemicals is an area of high non-compliance. In a previous Forum project (REF-8), inspectors frequently found that mixtures and items sold online contained restricted hazardous substances, including those that cause cancer. The project found that 78% of the mixtures or articles inspected did not meet the conditions of the REACH restrictions.
Stricter online sales rules
In the upcoming project, inspectors can expect stricter rules for online sales, such as the Digital Services Act and the General Product Safety Regulation. These new laws are expected to strengthen enforcement.
Biocide Control Enforcement Project
The Forum’s Biocidal Products Regulation Subgroup (BPRS) agreed that the next major biocide product enforcement project (BEF-3) will focus on verifying the accuracy of biocide product labels. Inspectors will verify that the information on biocidal product labels is consistent with what is allowed and with the information in the SmPC. Where required for biocidal products, inspectors may also verify the presence and quality of the information in the safety data sheets.
REF-13 and BEF-3 projects
Both REF-13 and BEF-3 projects will be prepared in 2024, inspections are planned for 2025, and reports are expected to be published in 2026.
New presidents and vice presidents
During the meeting, Forum members elected a new president and two new vice presidents. Henrik Hedlund (SE) will start as president of the forum, and Katja vom Hofe (DE) and Maria Orphanou (CY) will be vice presidents starting June 21, 2023. The Biocides Subgroup elects Helmut de Vos (BE) as chair and Jenny Karlsson (SE) and Eugen Anwander (AT) as vice-chairs.
Background
The Enforcement Forum, including its BPR Subgroup (BPRS), is a network of EU and EEA enforcement authorities. They are responsible for coordinating the enforcement of the REACH, CLP, PIC, POPs and Biocides Regulations with the aim of protecting our health and the environment while ensuring a level playing field for companies across the EU market.
The Forum met in Helsinki June 13-15 and the BPRS June 15-16, 2023, with the next meetings taking place in November.
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Source: ECHA
Also Read: When should you update or revise your safety data sheets (SDS)?
Reservation
This information has been compiled with the greatest possible care, in some cases from different information sources. (Interpretation) errors are not excluded. No legal obligation can therefore be derived from this text. Everyone dealing with this subject has the responsibility to delve into the matter!
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