ECHA Finds Inadequate Labelling Information Quality in Substantial Proportion of Treated Articles
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) recently released its report of the first harmonized enforcement project on treated articles. The project was designed to evaluate awareness and compliance among parties involved in treated article availability in the European Union. In this blog post, we present a brief overview of the project and discuss some of its major outcomes.
About the First Harmonized Enforcement Project on Treated Articles
The objective of the project (also referred to as the first biocides enforcement project (BEF-1)) was to regulate the presence of proper labelling information for treated articles made available on the European Union market. The project focused particularly on treated articles that had biocidal property claims and that included active substances requiring specific labelling.
The treated articles inspected included a combination of professional products (e.g., personal safety equipment), consumer-focused products (e.g., clothing), and various chemical mixtures.
Inspections for the project were conducted in 2019 in 22 countries. These included inspection of 1,844 treated articles across 1,187 companies.
| Member State | Number of Inspected Companies | Number of Inspected Treated Articles |
|---|---|---|
| Belgium | 19 | 54 |
| Switzerland | 14 | 37 |
| Czech Republic | 28 | 38 |
| Germany | 223 | 365 |
| Denmark | 13 | 12 |
| Estonia | 13 | 25 |
| Spain | 89 | 126 |
| Finland | 23 | 25 |
| France | 58 | 129 |
| Hungary | 98 | 108 |
| Ireland | 5 | 5 |
| Italy | 7 | 7 |
| Lithuania | 15 | 19 |
| Luxembourg | 9 | 25 |
| Latvia | 19 | 21 |
| Netherlands | 32 | 30 |
| Norway | 5 | 10 |
| Poland | 132 | 181 |
| Romania | 277 | 441 |
| Sweden | 71 | 107 |
| Slovenia | 10 | 10 |
| Slovakia | 27 | 69 |
Source: European Chemicals Agency
Analysis of the data from the project revealed several key findings, the most notable of which include the following:
- For 64 % of inspected treated articles (both articles and mixtures treated with active substances), full and correct labelling was present
- For 36 % of inspected treated articles (both articles and mixtures treated with active substances), labelling information was deemed improper or inadequate
- Fundamental information was found to be lacking in 42% of articles and 23% of mixtures
Project results demonstrate that companies need to improve the quality of their labelling and better understand their responsibilities as they relate to treated articles.
Accessing Additional Information
More detailed information on the first harmonized enforcement project on treated articles may be found by reviewing the ECHA’s corresponding report. You can also visit the ToxPlanet website and blog regularly for relevant information as it becomes available.
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