Softlines & Leather regulatory updates May 2023

Europe

New European regulation for consumer products

On 23 May 2023, the European Commission published the general product safety regulation (GPSR):

Regulation (EU) 2023/988 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 May 2023 on general product safety, amending Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Directive (EU) 2020/1828 of the European Parliament and the Council, and repealing Directive 2001/95/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Council Directive 87/357/EEC

The aim of this new regulation is to reinforce the safety rules for products sold both offline and online, market surveillance for unsafe products and consumer rights.

With today’s digital and technological advances and the increase in online shopping, it was necessary to update the rules regarding product safety. The GPSR transforms the general product safety directive of 2001 into a regulation, which leaves no scope for member states to transpose the rules with divergent legislation. It also repeals Directive 87/357/EEC concerning products which endanger the health or safety of consumers by appearing to be other than they are, as the requirements of this Directive are incorporated into GPSR are incorporated into GPSR.

In addition, the GPSR modernises the rules for all economic operators (manufacturers, importers and distributors) and updates the rules for online businesses and marketplaces.

This new regulation will enter into force 20 days after its publication and member states will have 18 months to apply the new rules on general product safety.

For more information, visit the official publication on the European Commission website here.

New restriction for lead in PVC articles

On 8 May 2023, the European Commission published an amendment to the restrictions list in Annex XVII of Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 as regards lead and its compounds in PVC (polymers or copolymers of vinyl chloride).

Commission Regulation (EU) 2023/923 of 3 May 2023 adds six points in entry 63 – lead and its compound, column 2, of Annex XVII of Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH).

Lead is a toxic substance which has a negative impact on human health and the environment. It is used to make PVC thermally stable during compounding and article production. It also protects PVC against photo-degradation. To comply with the proposed restriction, it is necessary to restrict all lead in PVC, regardless of its intended function. As a means of limiting the carryover of lead in new products, through recycling processes, economic operators should be granted a 24-month period to adapt to the new requirements for flexible PVC; for rigid PVC, the obligation will apply 36 after the Regulation enters into force.

The main new restrictions are:

• Items shall not be placed on the market if the concentration of lead is equal to or greater than 0.1 % of the weight of the PVC material. This shall come into effect on 29 November 2024. Exceptions:
• PVC articles containing recovered flexible PVC until 28 May 2025;
• PVC articles containing recovered rigid PVC until 28 May 2033, if the concentration of lead is lower than 1.5 % of the weight of the recovered rigid PVC;
• From 28 May 2026, rigid PVC recovered for construction items referenced in this entry shall only be used for the production of new such construction items.
• Suppliers of PVC items containing recovered rigid PVC shall submit documentary evidence to national enforcement authorities upon request, substantiating claims about the recovered origin of the PVC in those items. Certificates issued by schemes to provide proof of traceability and recycled content, such as those developed according to EN 15343:2007 or equivalent recognised standards, may be used to substantiate such claims for PVC items produced in the European Union. Claims made as to the recovered origin of the PVC in imported articles shall be accompanied by a certificate that provides equivalent proof of traceability and recycled content, issued by an independent third party.

This amendment shall not apply to:

• PVC-silica separators in lead acid batteries, until 28 May 2033;
• Jewellery items and items supplied to the general public, with accessible parts, with a concentration of lead equal to or greater than 0.05 % by weight, which can be placed in the mouth by children;
• Items within the scope of:
• Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004 - food contact materials and articles which are intended to come into contact with food
• Directive 2011/65/EU - Restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment
• Directive 94/62/EC - packaging and packaging waste
• Directive 2009/48/EC - safety of toys
• PVC articles placed on the market before 28 November 2024.

This Regulation shall enter into force on 28 May 2023.

For more information, consult the official publication on the European Commission website here.

One step closer to ecodesign requirements for consumer products

On 22 May 2023, the European Council adopted its position on ecodesign requirements for sustainable products.

The Council position clarifies how member state experts and industry should be involved in the future development of ecodesign requirements and the criteria and aspects that should be considered before ecodesign requirements are developed.

The new ecodesign regulation will be applicable to almost all categories of products and establish harmonised requirements for specific product groups, such as recycled content, presence of substances that inhibit circularity, etc... The aim is to make products more durable, reliable, reusable, upgradable, reparable, recyclable, easier to maintain, and more energy- and resource-efficient.

The proposal will also establish a "Digital Product Passport" which will provide information about a product's environmental sustainability, including its carbon and environmental footprints, durability, reusability, upgradability, reparability, etc. Other interesting points in this new proposal are provisions on transparency, the prevention of destruction of unsold consumer products, and green public procurement.

The new regulation will replace the current Ecodesign Directive 2009/125/EC, enlarging the scope to cover almost all kinds of goods placed on the EU market, only exempting food, feed, medicine and veterinary products and motor vehicles.

As regards textiles, the proposal introduces a ban on the destruction of textiles, footwear and apparel, with a four-year exemption for medium-sized companies, and a general exemption for small and micro companies.

Now the next step will be negotiations between the European Parliament and the Council, which will begin when the Parliament adopts its position.

For more information, visit the official publication here.

Standard updates

The below table summarises the most recent standard updates and upcoming dates of withdrawal (non-exhaustive):

(*) Date of withdrawal: the latest date by which national standards conflicting with an EN (and HD for CENELEC) have to be withdrawn.

CHINA

China publishes updated GB Standards

On 23 May 2023, The State Administration for Market Regulation (Standardization Administration of the People's Republic of China, SAC) published the announcement Nº2 of 2023 which approved 535 recommended national standards and 2 national standard amendments.

On 21 April 2023, The Ministry of Industry and information technology of the People‘s Republic of China (MIIT) published the announcement Nº7 of 2023 which approved 586 industry standards.

Below is a table with more relevant standards (non-exhaustive list):

PRODUCT RECALLS / ALERTS

Below you will find a monthly summary of product recalls and alerts in Europe (Source “Safety Gate (RAPEX)”) and the U.S. (Source “CPSC”).

Europe

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

The following 45 alerts regarding clothing, textiles and fashion items were reported between week 16 and 20 of 2023.

U.S.

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

From 27 April 2023 to 18 May 2023, the CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) published the following recalls: 1 recall of textile & leather products.