Online sale of products: new European monitoring plan kicks off
Toys, household items, costume jewelry, clothing and personal care products.
These are just a few of the most frequently purchased items online.
But are they really safe?
ECHA – European Chemical Agency – has called the online marketplace "an area of high non-compliance."
For this reason, and in light of the pilot project conducted in 2020, the Enforcement Forum has agreed to initiate an extensive Europe-wide monitoring plan to verify the compliance of items sold online, with focus:
- Restrictions imposed by the REACH Regulation on articles
- Charges for classification, labeling and packaging of substances under the CLP Regulation.
Inspectors will also be able to verify:
- Compliance imposed by the Regulation on Persistent Organic Pollutants
- Compliance with the RoHS Directive on electrical and electronic equipment.
Monitoring plans will be prepared by the end of next year, with inspections planned for 2025 and subsequent publication of data.
What emerged in the 2020 pilot project?
Regarding items, a selection of parameters was made then verified in specific artifacts:
| Entry | Number of inspected products | Number of non-compliant products | % of non-compliance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry 23: Cadmio | 346 | ||
| 23.2 materiali plastici | 6 | 2 | 33 |
| 23.10 gioielleria/bigiotteria | 340 | 79 | 23 |
| Entry 27: Nichel in gioielleria/bigiotteria | 302 | 16 | 5 |
| Entry 28-30: CMR substances | 1874 | 1855 | 99 |
| Piombo | 1693 | 1690 | 99 |
| Acido borico | 135 | 135 | 100 |
| Formaldeide | 7 | 6 | 86 |
| Tetraborato disodico | 8 | 6 | 75 |
| Altri | 31 | 18 | 58 |
| Entry 43: Azocoloranti | 32 | ||
| Pellami | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Tessili | 31 | 0 | 0 |
| Entry 45: OctaBDE | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Entry 47. 5-7: Cromo VI in articoli in pelle | 76 | 6 | 8 |
| Entry 51: Ftalati (DEHP, DBP, BBP, DIBP) | 106 | ||
| Giocattoli | 82 | 12 | 15 |
| Prodotti per bambini | 24 | 0 | 0 |
| Entry 52: Ftalati (DINP, DIDP, DNOP) | 122 | ||
| Giocattoli | 94 | 2 | 2 |
| Prodotti per bambini | 28 | 0 | 0 |
| Entry 63: Piombo | 374 | ||
| 63.1 gioielleria/bigiotteria | 337 | 31 | 9 |
| 63.7 articoli | 7 | 2 | 29 |
| Entry 68: DecaBDE | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Altre restrizioni stabilite dagli Stati Membri partecipanti al progetto | 170 | 47 | 28 |
| Entry 6: Fibre di amianto | 15 | 15 | 100 |
| Entry 56: Methylenediphenyl DiIsocyanate (MDI) | 13 | 7 | 54 |
| Entry 69: Metanolo | 46 | 9 | 20 |
| Entry 48: Toluene | 18 | 2 | 11 |
| Entry 50: Idrocarburi Policiclici Aromatici (IPA) | 43 | 4 | 9 |
| Entry 66: Bisfenolo A (BPA) | 12 | 1 | 8 |
| Entry 5: Benzene | 16 | 0 | 0 |
| Entry 32: Cloroformio | 14 | 0 | 0 |
As can be seen from the table above, only some of the regulatory compliance requirements were verified. Numerous failures were found, especially for some parameters. Recalculating the values to the total, it shows that 78 percent of the verified artifacts were found to be non-compliant.
But are these projects the only control activities planned at the European level?
No, there are multiple strategies put in place at the European level to protect the consumer from what may be chemical and physical hazards in consumer goods. For example, customs-level monitoring is carried out for imported goods, and each individual Member State prepares sampling and verification plans based on priority control plans.
Labanalysis Group Laboratories can provide all-round support in mapping the requirements to which consumer goods are subjected, testing their compliance according to specific intended uses and the directly applicable regulatory framework.
Per ulteriori informazioni
info@labanalysis.it