Eurofins Personal Protective Equipment Bimonthly Bulletin (May-June 2021)

FRANCE

Technical publications

Please find below a table summarising the most recent technical publications (non-exhaustive):

Date	Entity	Title
09/04/2021	DGCCRF	Deception on the origin of masks: the DGCCRF is investigating a company marketing surgical and FFP2 masks falsely presented as being made in France.
29/04/2021	DGCCRF	Control of personal protective equipment (PPE) The economic sector of personal protective equipment (PPE) has many operators, some of whom are unaware of the regulatory provisions applicable to these products. The national control plan of the DGCCRF in 2019 targeted two main product categories as a priority: PPE for nautical or aquatic sports (excluding diving) and protective articles for DIY or leisure work.

SPAIN

Guidelines for masks and protective clothing manufacturing

On 8 June 2021, the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism published a new document related to masks and protective clothing. See the document below:

Respiratory protection masks (PPE)

PPE type masks how to legalize them (in Spanish).

U.S.

Vermont Passes Senate Bill S.20 into Law - Chemicals in Consumer Goods

On 18 May 2021, the governor of Vermont signed Senate Bill S.20 into law, which regulates several chemicals in certain consumer goods and amends the list of chemicals of high concern to children (CHCCs). The Act will be implemented in phases, starting 1 July, 2021.

The definitions of "Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances", "Ortho-phthalates” and " Bisphenols " in the Act are as follows:

"Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances” mean a family of fluorinated organic chemicals containing at least one fully fluorinated carbon atom.
"Ortho-phthalates” means any member of the class of organic chemicals that are esters of phthalic acid containing two carbon chains located in the ortho position.
“Bisphenols” means any member of a class of industrial chemicals that contain two hydroxyphenyl groups.

Summary table 1:

Substance	Scope with some exemptions	Requirement
PFAS	Personal protective equipment	Notice statement
PFAS	Ski wax Class B firefighting foam Class B firefighting foams for use at a terminal Residential rugs and carpets Aftermarket stain and water-resistant treatments for rugs or carpets Food Packaging	Prohibited
Effective date: Personal protective equipment, 1 July, 2021 Class B firefighting foam, 1 July, 2022 Class B firefighting foam used at a terminal, 1 January, 2024 Others, 1 July, 2023
Ortho-phthalates	Food Packaging	Prohibited
Effective date: July 1, 2023
Bisphenols	Food Packaging	Dept. of Health (DOH) may adopt rules for prohibition
Effective date: 2 years after the DOH adopts the rule

A Certificate of Compliance (CoC) should be produced by the manufacturer within 30 days upon request by the Attorney General.

Summary table 2:

Substance	Scope with some exemptions	Requirement
PFHxS, PFHpA, PFNA	Children’s products	Add them as chemicals of high concern to children
Effective date: 1 July, 2022

For more information please click here.

Standards updates

The table below summarises some recent ASTM standards updates:

Reference	Title
ASTM F3258 - 21	Standard Specification for Protectors for Rubber Insulating Gloves Meeting Specific Performance Requirements

INTERNATIONAL

Regulatory proposals notified to WTO

The table below summarises the most recent notifications made to the World Trade Organization (WTO) (non-exhaustive):

Notification number	Countries	Title
G/TBT/N/PER/131	Peru	Technical Document: Guidelines for the manufacturing of reusable cloth face-masks for use by the community The notified Ministerial Resolution No. 558-2021/MINSA (Ministry of Health) is aimed at persons and companies involved in the manufacturing of cloth face masks for use by the community to reduce the spread of the virus responsible for COVID-19/. This aims to establish parameters for the materials, design, manufacturing, finishing, labelling, packaging and testing methods of reusable face masks for use by the community.

PRODUCT RECALLS/ ALERTS

Below you will find a monthly summary of product recalls and alerts in Europe (Source “RAPEX”).

Europe

RAPEX (European Commission Rapid Alert System for dangerous non-food products – Alerts reported by EU national authorities).

The following 31 alerts regarding Personal Protective equipment were reported between week 16 and week 24 of 2021.

Type of Risk	Number of alerts	Notes
Health risk/ other	22	Particle filter mask The particle/filter retention of the material is insufficient and the total filtration capacity of the mask is insufficient. It does not comply with the Personal Protective Equipment Regulation and with EN 149.
Health risk/ other	7	Particle filter mask The product bears a CE marking but its filtering capacity has not been tested by a relevant competent European conformity assessment body. It does not comply with the Personal Protective Equipment Regulation and with EN 149.
Injuries	1	Fall arrester If the openable side plate is subject to a heavy load, it may cause the locking system to fail, leading to injuries to the user. The product does not comply with the Personal Protective Equipment Regulation
Microbiological	1	Particle filter mask It does not fulfil the health and safety requirements; thus, even if combined with other recommended measures, it may not properly protect the user. It does not comply with the Personal Protective Equipment Regulation and with EN 149.
Suffocation	1	Particle filter mask The physical resistance of the filtering material is too high. It does not comply with the Personal Protective Equipment Regulation and with EN 149.

Between 21 April and 20 June 2021, the CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) published the following recalls: 0 recall PPE products.