May 2022

La legislación vigente regula determinados productos de consumo que contienen mercurio, como las lámparas fluorescentes compactas y las lámparas fluorescentes lineales. Las fechas de entrada en vigor de las prohibiciones enumeradas en la propuesta AB-2208 para dichas lámparas fluorescentes son el 1 de enero de 2024 y el 1 de enero de 2025, respectivamente.

California AB-2208 Lámparas fluorescentes: prohibición de venta y distribución se presentó el 22 de febrero de 2022 y se modificó en la Asamblea el 19 de abril de 2022. En virtud de este proyecto de ley:

1. Las lámparas fluorescentes compactas no se pondrán a la venta final como productos nuevos fabricados a partir del 1 de enero de 2024.

2. Las lámparas fluorescentes lineales no se pondrán a la venta como productos nuevos a partir del 1 de enero de 2025.

3. Las siguientes lámparas están exentas de esta prohibición:

   1. Lámpara utilizada para la captura y proyección de imágenes

   2. Una lámpara que tiene una alta proporción de emisión de luz ultravioleta

   3. Lámpara utilizada para diagnóstico o tratamiento médico o veterinario, o utilizada en un producto sanitario.

   4. Lámpara utilizada en la fabricación o el control de calidad de productos farmacéuticos

   5. Lámpara utilizada para aplicaciones espectroscópicas y fotométricas

Algunos ejemplos del punto 3 son

Las fechas de entrada en vigor de las prohibiciones enumeradas para las lámparas fluorescentes compactas y las lámparas fluorescentes lineales son el 1 de enero de 2024 y el 1 de enero de 2025, respectivamente.

Washington State introduced a law which will accelerate the development of regulations for a variety of consumer products that contain perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).

On 31 March 2022, Washington State’s Governor signed the bill (HB 1694, concerning logistical processes for the regulation of priority chemicals in consumer products) into law. This law will accelerate the state’s ability to develop regulations for a variety of consumer products containing perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).

The new law requires the state of Washington’s Department of Ecology (DOE) to name PFAS-containing firefighting personal protective equipment as a “priority product”. The law also allows DOE to name any product identified in the 2021 PFAS chemical action plan (CAP) as a “priority product”. This includes non-stick cookware, personal care products, cleaning agents, water-repellent clothing and gear, automotive products, and waxes and sealants for floors, skis, and cars.

Moreover, the law gives the DOE the authority to address additional PFAS containing products as “priority products”. In the past, the DOE would add products to the “priority” list every five years. This law accelerates the five-year waiting period. The law is not a complete ban on the use of PFAS; instead, it requires the DOE to determine an initial set of regulatory actions for PFAS in CAP-identified products by 1 June 2024, and then adopt rules to implement the determinations by 1 December 2025.

California has issued a second modification of text to revise its proposed rule on clear and reasonable warnings for California Proposition 65 (Prop 65) for Short Form Warnings. Public comments were collected starting 5 April 2022 until 20 April 2022.

On 5 April 2022, the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) issued a second 15-Day modification of text to proposed amendments to Prop 65 Article 6 – Clear and Reasonable Warnings – Short Form. The latest proposal removes the limitation on the use of short-form warnings for smaller products and retains the requirement to list a chemical for toxicity terminuses.

test. After reviewing the public comments of the first modification, the proposed regulatory text has been further modified by OEHHA and some of the proposed modifications are listed below:

1. The language “exposes you to” in subsections 25603(b) and 25607.2(b) is changed to “can expose you to”, which makes the language conform with the general content language in general consumer safe harbour warning (Section 25603).

2. The limitations of package shape and label size on the use of short-form warnings are removed in Section 25602(a)(4), which means that the short-form warning can be used on product labels of any size, regardless of the package shape and size.

3. The requirement in Section 25602(a)(4) is removed, which means that the requirement of having a minimum of 6-point type size when using short-form warnings in existing provision remains unchanged.

4. The date that the regulation becomes effective is modified to two years rather than one year after the effective date of the amendments in Subsections 25602(e) and 25607.2(c).

According to the latest notice of modification, public comments were to be collected until 20 April 2022. The amendments would become operative two years after the effective date of the amendments.

On 26 April 2022, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) published a final rule for 16 CFR 1235 Safety Standard for Baby Changing Products, incorporated by reference to ASTM F2388-21. The effective date will be 31 July 2022.

On 1 February 2022, ASTM notified the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) that it had revised the voluntary standard for baby changing products, approving ASTM F2388-21 Standard Consumer Safety Specification for Baby Changing Products for Domestic Use on 15 November 2021. Based on the CPSC staff’s review of ASTM F2388-21, the Commission will allow the revised voluntary standard to become the mandatory standard because the revised requirements in the voluntary standard either improve the safety of baby changing products or are neutral with respect to safety.

ASTM F2388-21 includes two substantive changes and some non-substantive revisions.

Substantive Changes:

1. Two notes have been added to Figure 9 to provide the overall width and length dimensions for the tension tool used and a metric equivalent dimension has been added for one of the dimensions shown in the figure.

2. Section 9.5 which provides warning statements that must be addressed on product labels and which requires that the warnings align with the format and text requirements illustrated in the standard have been updated:

   1. Section 9.5.1 “Fall Hazard,” at the beginning of the warning statement, in ASTM F2388-21, this hazard statement has been revised to be capitalized as “FALL HAZARD”

   2. Section 9.5.3 “Suffocation Hazard” at the beginning of the warning statement, in ASTM F2388-21, this warning statement has also been revised to be capitalized as “SUFFOCATION HAZARD”

Non-Substantive Revisions:

1. Footnote 1 has been revised to include “baby changing products,” instead of “changing tables,”

2. Figure 11, which provides examples of left-aligned warning label text, has been renumbered as Figure X1.1 and relocated from section 9, Marking and Labeling, to section X1, Rationale.

3. Minor wording changes and grammatical corrections have been made, including:

   1. changing “example warning labels” to “example warning statements” (section 9.4.7);

   2. changing the warning label statement regarding fall hazards from “stay within arm’s reach” to “stay in arm’s reach of your child” (section 9.5.1);

   3. correcting the title of updated Figure X1.1 from “Example of Left Aligned Text” to “Example of Left-aligned Text.”

4. Several figure names have been revised in section 9 Marking and Labeling and section 10 Instructional Literature.

In the US, when hazards are identified in consumer products, they will be recalled and published in the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Recent Recalls on the CPSC website, which is updated daily. The US recalls from 01 April 2022 to 30 April 2022 are summarized below:

For a complete list click here

In Canada, when hazards are identified in consumer products, they will be recalled and published in the Recalls and Safety Alerts Database on the Health Canada website, which is updated daily. The Canada recalls from 01 April 2022 to 30 April 2022 are summarized below:

*Other Hazards include Safety Risk Hazard, Entrapment Hazard, Laceration Hazard and Poisoning Hazard with a frequency of less than 2.

*Other Categories include Cannabis, Sporting Goods / Equipment, Tools and Hardware, Medical Devices, Food Contact Material, Pharmacy and Furniture with a frequency of less than 2.

For a complete list click here

The European Committee for Standardization (CEN) has published the new version of the nickel screening method which is a qualitative method for detecting the presence of nickel in articles. This standard is effective immediately.

In February 2022, the European Committee for Standardization (Comité Européen de Normalisation, CEN) published CEN/TR 12471:2022 - a new version of the nickel screening method which is a cost-effective qualitative method for detecting the presence of nickel in articles. Such method is a completely revised and restructured edition of CR 12471:2002 ‘Screening tests for nickel release from alloys and coatings in items that come into direct and prolonged contact with the skin.’

This screening test is based upon the use of dimethylglyoxime (by the formation of a red coloured metal complex with nickel ions) for detecting the presence of nickel in articles that are inserted into pierced parts of the human body and those that are intended to come into direct and prolonged contact with the skin.

This new version of the method has several important points:

1. States that the reference method for nickel release is EN 1811 (or EN 16128 for spectacle frames and sunglasses)

2. Emphasizes the test to verify the compliance of REACH Annex XVII Entry 27 is the quantitative test method EN 1811 (or the abrasion test EN 12472 followed by EN 1811)

3. Advises that a positive finding in this screening test may not be compliant with the respective nickel release limit falling under REACH Annex XVII Entry 27

The United Kingdom (UK) has recently informed the World Trade Organization of the intention to revise its legislation on cosmetics and toy safety for Great Britain. It will be implemented in different phases, starting 15 October 2022.

On 13 April 2022, a notification letter (document no. 22-3025) under G/TBT/N/GBR/47 from the World Trade Organization (WTO) was introduced. It is the draft regulation about the intention of a revision to the Toys (Safety) Regulation 2011 (UK Statutory Instruments 2011 No. 1881) and the Cosmetic Regulation 1223/2009 which is applicable in Great Britain (GB) including England, Wales and Scotland. The final date for comments is 14 June 2022 and the proposed date of adoption is 15 June 2022.

This draft regulation restricts or prohibits the use of chemical substances in cosmetics and toy products. For cosmetic products, there is a permission of the use of salicylic acid for uses other than as a preservative, only in specific product types. Also, there is a prohibition on the use of deoxyarbutin and a set of chemicals classified as Carcinogenic, Mutagenic or Reprotoxic (CMR) under GB Classification, Labeling and Packaging (CLP) Regulations. Relative to updates for toy products, notable changes to chemical requirements are listed below. Such chemical requirement updates in GB will further align with those requirements in the European Union (EU) Toys Safety Directive 2009/48/EC:

1. The number of allergenic fragrances is expanded from 55 substances to 58 substances by adding atranol, chloroatranol and methyl heptane carbonate (Schedule 2, Part 3, Point 11). These allergenic fragrances are prohibited. However, if they are technically unavoidable under good manufacturing practice (GMP) and the acceptable concentration level of each fragrance is no more than 100 mg/kg is met, then their presence is allowed.

2. The migration of aluminum is strengthened by 2.5-fold for all three categories of toy materials (Schedule 2, Part 3, Point 13)

3. Aniline and formaldehyde are restricted in certain toys/toy materials (Schedule 2, Appendix C)

Two identified effective dates for toy products are highlighted:

1. 15 December 2022 (specific to the migration of aluminum and the requirements of aniline and formaldehyde)

2. 15 October 2022 (for stipulations other than those indicated above)

Excluding the stipulations for the three new allergenic fragrances, toys that are made available on the market prior to 15 October 2022, can be made available on the market until 15 December 2022.

Excluding the stipulations for aluminum, aniline and formaldehyde, toys that are made available on the market prior to 15 December 2022, can be made available on the market until 15 December 2023.

The proposed requirements of aluminum, aniline and formaldehyde are shown in the below tables.

Se han puesto en marcha nuevos requisitos de la normativa francesa (artículo 17 de la ley francesa de Lucha contra los Residuos y por la Economía Circular (AGEC) y Decreto n° 2021-835 de 29 de junio de 2021) que hacen obligatoria la información de clasificación y el símbolo Triman en los artículos textiles de confección, ropa de hogar y calzado; este criterio será obligatorio en el mercado francés a partir del 1 de febrero de 2023. Esta nueva señalización forma parte del despliegue de la ley n° 2020-105 de 10 de febrero de 2020, relativa a la lucha contra los residuos y la economía circular. Gráficos y tablas: Fototeca, banco de imágenes, tablas e infografías (refashion.fr)

De conformidad con los requisitos de la normativa francesa, el artículo 17 de la Ley francesa de Lucha contra los Residuos y por la Economía Circular (AGEC) y el Decreto nº 2021-835 de 29 de junio de 2021, deben mostrarse dos elementos:

• El símbolo Triman

• Información sobre la clasificación: Información que especifica los métodos de clasificación o depósito de los residuos resultantes del producto. Debe figurar en el producto, en su embalaje o, en su defecto, en otros documentos suministrados con el producto (por ejemplo, manual o instrucciones de uso).

Ejemplo de logotipos (para ropa), consisten en:

• Símbolo Triman

• Categorías de productos

• Banco de autodepósito

• Enlace URL al mapa de Ademe

• Las cartas FR que especifican esta medida se rigen por la normativa francesa

Los logotipos de la ropa, la ropa de casa y el calzado pueden mostrarse solos, o juntos, y con punto(s) de autodepósito (símbolos de contenedor, almacén y asociación).

El símbolo Triman y la información de clasificación deben estar físicamente presentes cuando el cliente compra el artículo y pueden mostrarse en diferentes soportes:

• en la etiqueta textil que muestra la composición de la fibra,

• en la etiqueta temporal (como la etiqueta de cartón o la etiqueta colgante),

• impreso o bordado en el producto,

• en el envase en el que se vende el producto a los clientes (etiqueta con el nombre, caja, bolsa, etc.) o

• en forma de pegatina.

Notas importantes sobre la aplicación:

• Fin del periodo transitorio: 1 de febrero de 2023

• Fin del plazo para vender existencias de productos: 1 de agosto de 2023

Las partes interesadas tienen hasta el 1 de febrero de 2023 para incluir la información en los productos y hasta el 1 de agosto de 2023 para garantizar que las existencias previas (productos fabricados o importados antes del 1 de febrero de 2023) también cumplen la normativa.

In Europe, when hazards are identified in Non-food Consumer Products, the Products will be recalled and published in the Safety Gate system, which is updated weekly. The European recalls from 01 April 2022 to 30 April 2022 are summarized below:

*Other Hazards include Suffocation Hazard, Drowning Hazard and Strangulation Hazard with a frequency of less than 4.

*Other Categories include Household Items, Accessories, Sporting Goods / Equipment, Computer / Audio / Video / Other Electronics & Accessories, Outdoor Living Items, Stationery, Tools and Hardware and Machinery with a frequency of less than 3.

*Other Countries include Norway, Slovakia, Austria, Czechia, Luxembourg, Italy and Latvia with a frequency of less than 5.

For a complete list click here

In China, when hazards are identified in consumer products, they will be recalled and published in the SAMR Defective Product Administrative Centre, which is updated daily. The China recalls from 01 April 2022 to 30 April 2022 are summarized below:

*Other Hazards include Poisoning Hazard, Entanglement Hazard, Damage to Sight, Injury Hazard, Entrapment Hazard and Cut Hazard with a frequency of less than 3.

*Other Categories include Construction Products, Chemicals and Footwear with a frequency of less than 2.

For a complete list click here

En Australia, cuando se identifican peligros en los productos de consumo, se retiran y se publican en la base de datos de retiradas y alertas de seguridad del sitio web de la Comisión Australiana de Competencia y Consumo, que se actualiza diariamente. A continuación se resumen las retiradas de Australia desde el 1 de abril de 2022 hasta el 30 de abril de 2022:

*Otros Peligros incluyen Peligro de Asfixia, Peligro de Ahogamiento y Riesgo de Irritación Cutánea con una frecuencia inferior a 2.

Para consultar la lista completa, pulse aquí