Prop.65 Clearinghouse
NEWS
European Union Chemical News Roundup, November 2016
By LANA BECKETT
November 28, 2016
EU Parliament Adopts Non-Binding Resolution on Banning BPA From Food Contact Material
Members of the European Parliament have voted for a non-binding resolution asking the EU to "further harmonize the safety requirements for food contact materials [FCMs], which are largely used in everyday life in the form of food packaging, kitchen utensils and tableware." According to the Parliament's press release, "Only four out of listed 17 food contact materials are currently covered by specific safety measures foreseen in existing EU framework legislation: plastics, ceramics, regenerated cellulose and ‘active and intelligent’ materials."
The vote calls on the European Commission to consider identifying bisphenol A (BPA) as one of the substances classified as a substance of very high concern (SVHC) under REACH regulations. It also asks the Commission to prohibit the use of bisphenol S (BPS) in FCMs "as a substitute for Bisphenol A (BPA), as BPS may have a toxicological profile similar to BPA."
Leaked Documents Appear to Show Lobbyist Influenced EU Officials to Drop Legislation on Acrylamide
Food Safety magazine reported that leaked documents obtained by The Guardian show that food safety officials in the EU have dropped legislation that was supposed to limit the use of acrylamide.
After increased pressure from the EU food industry, European food safety authorities appear to have done away with plans to limit the use of acrylamide in food. The leaked documents reportedly prove that food lobbyists influenced the EU's regulatory decision making process. Another part of the legislation was supposed to require food companies to conduct regular testing to ensure that levels of acrylamide in food products were as low as possible.
Proposition 65 has listed acrylamide as a carcinogen since 1990 and a male developmental toxicant since 2011.
European Commission Initiates New Five-Year Review of EU Reach
The European Commission (EC) has initiated its planned five-year review of the European Union’s (EU) REACH law.
As a basis for its evaluation, the Commission will draw on a broad range of information sources, including reports from Member States and ECHA as well as thematic studies tendered by the Commission and carried out by external consultants. Stakeholder consultation is another important source of evidence, data, and information linked to the implementation of REACH.
The last EC review of the 2006 law, published only three years ago, concluded that no major changes were required to REACH. This next review is supposed to be completed by June 1, 2017.
ECHA Hopes to Evaluate 117 Substances by 2019
ECHA has prepared a proposal to update the Community rolling action plan (CoRAP) for 2017-2019. The Member States are planning to evaluate 117 substances, out of which 22 are newly selected. 24 substances are expected to be evaluated in 2017, 47 in 2018, and 46 in 2019. The draft plan has been prepared together with the Member States, taking into account risk-based criteria to select the substances. The final plan will be adopted in March 2017.
ECHA’s Member State Committee will discussed the proposal in October and will prepare an opinion on the draft plan in February 2017. Based on the opinion, ECHA will adopt the final CoRAP update for 2017-2019 and publish it in March 2017. From the publication, the Member States will have one year to evaluate the substances specified for 2017.
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