Softlines & Leather regulatory updates June 2023

Europe

New update to Candidate List of Substances of Very High Concern (SVHCs)

On 14 June 2023, the ECHA (European Chemicals Agency) released the new Candidate List of SVHCs. With the addition of two new substances, the current list of SVHCs now contains 235 substances.

Please see below a table indicating the latest substances added to the list:

Nº	Substance name	EC number	CAS number	Reason for inclusion	Examples of use(s)
1	Diphenyl(2,4,6-trimethylbenzoyl)phosphine oxide	278-355-8	75980-60-8	Toxic for reproduction (Article 57c)	Inks and toners, coating products, photo-chemicals, polymers, adhesives and sealants and fillers, putties, plasters, and modelling clay.
2	Bis(4-chlorophenyl) sulphone	201-247-9	80-07-9	vPvB (Article 57 e)	Manufacturing chemicals, plastic products and rubber products.

Legal obligations for companies using substances of very high concern (SVHC) include:

- Suppliers provide customers and consumers with enough information to allow for the safe use of products that contain an SVHC above a concentration of 0.1 % weight by weight (w/w).

- Importers and producers of these products must notify the ECHA if their article contains SVHC substances above a concentration of 0.1% w/w and the substance is present in these products in quantities totalling over one tonne per producer or per importer per year. Notifications have to be submitted within six months from the date that the substance was added to the list of SVHCs.

- Suppliers of substances on the Candidate List, supplied either on their own or in mixtures, must provide their customers with a safety data sheet.

- Under the Waste Framework Directive (Directive 2008/98/EC on waste- WFD), any supplier of an article containing an SVHC in a concentration above 0.1% w/w on the EU market is required to submit an SCIP Notification for that article to the ECHA, as of 5 January 2021. SCIP is the database holding information on Substances of Concern in articles, as such or in complex objects (products), established under the WFD. The SCIP database complements the existing notification obligations for Candidate List substances in articles subject to REACH regulation and its related communication through the supply chain, according to Articles 7 (2) and 33 respectively.

Click here to refer to the official list on the ECHA’s website.

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.

(**) Date of announcement: the latest date by which the existence of an EN (and HD for CENELEC), a TS or a CWA has to be announced at a national level.

CEN
Reference	Title	*Date of withdrawal ()**	Supersedes
EN ISO 18218-1:2023	Leather - Determination of ethoxylated alkylphenols (APEO) - Part 1: Direct method (ISO 18218-1:2023)	31 December 2023	EN ISO 18218-1:2015
EN ISO 4484-3:2023	Textiles and textile products - Microplastics from textile sources - Part 3: Measurement of collected material mass released from textile end products by domestic washing method (ISO 4484-3:2023)	30 November 2023
EN ISO 23702-1:2023	Leather - Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances - Part 1: Determination of non-volatile compounds by extraction method using liquid chromatography (ISO 23702-1:2023)	31 December 2023	EN ISO 23702-1:2018
Reference	Title	Date of Availability ()**	Supersedes
CEN/TR 17945:2023	Textiles and textile products - Textiles with integrated electronics and ICT - Definitions, categorisation, applications and standardisation needs	31 May 2023

Washington adopts new restriction and reporting rule under the Safer Products Program

The Safer Products Program for the State of Washington implements the Toxic Pollution law (Chapter 70A.350 RCW), which was signed in 2019 to create a pathway to keep toxic chemicals out of the environment. Under the Safer Products Program, there is a four-phase implementation process to:

Designate priority chemicals;
Identify consumer products that contain these chemicals;
Decide whether to regulate those chemical-product combinations by requiring reporting or chemical restrictions; and
Adopt rules to implement those regulatory actions

On 31 May 2023, the State of Washington adopted Chapter 173-337 WAC – Safer Products Restrictions and Reporting to require manufacturers to restrict or report:

PFAS in aftermarket stain- and water-resistance treatments, carpets and rugs, and leather and textile furnishings;
Ortho-phthalates in vinyl flooring and personal care product fragrances;
Organohalogen flame retardants in electric and electronic products;
Flame retardants in recreational polyurethane foam; and
Phenolic compounds in laundry detergent, food and drink can linings, and thermal paper

Please see the following table for a summary of the requirements for textile items under the new rule.

Chemical(s)	Scope	Requirement	Effective Date
PFAS	Aftermarket stain- and water-resistance treatments	Prohibited if intentionally added	1 January 2025
	Carpets and rugs	Prohibited if intentionally added	1 January 2025
	Leather and textile furniture and furnishings for indoor use	Prohibited if intentionally added	1 January 2026
	Leather and textile furniture and furnishings for outdoor use	Prohibited if intentionally added	1 January 2024

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 33 alerts regarding clothing, textiles and fashion items were reported between week 21 and 24 of 2023.

Type of Risk	Number of alerts	Notes
Injuries	1	Children's trousers The product has long drawstrings with free ends to be tied in the waist area. The product does not comply with the requirements of the General Product Safety Directive or EN 14682.
	1	Children's Sweatpants / Sweatpants The product has long drawstrings with free ends to be tied in the waist area. The product does not comply with the requirements of the General Product Safety Directive or EN 14682.
	1	Children's shoes The velcro on the shoe may fail causing the strap to become undone, creating a tripping hazard for children. The product does not comply with the requirements of the General Product Safety Directive.
	1	Children's dress The product bears long functional cords to be tied at the back area. The cords may become trapped during various activities of a child, leading to injuries. The product does not comply with the requirements of the General Product Safety Directive or EN 14682.
Chemicals	4	Shoes The shoes have an excessive concentration of chromium (VI). These products do not comply with REACH Regulation.
	1	Gloves The shoes have an excessive concentration of chromium (VI). The product does not comply with REACH Regulation.
	1	Belt The shoes have an excessive concentration of chromium (VI). The product does not comply with REACH Regulation.
Entrapment, Injuries, Strangulation	1	Children’s hoodie The product has long functional cords in the neck area that can trap a child during his activities. The product does not comply with the requirements of the General Product Safety Directive or EN 14682.
Strangulation	1	Children's hoodie The product has long functional cords with free ends in the neck area. These cords can become trapped during various activities of a child, leading to strangulation. The product does not comply with the requirements of the General Product Safety Directive or EN 14682.
Strangulation	1	Children's sweatshirt The product has long functional cords with free ends in the neck area. These cords can become trapped during various activities of a child, leading to strangulation. The product does not comply with the requirements of the General Product Safety Directive or EN 14682.
Injuries, Strangulation	1	Children’s jacket The long functional cords with free ends can trap a child during his activities, leading to strangulation and/or injuries. The product does not comply with the requirements of the General Product Safety Directive or EN 14682.
	1	Children’s dress There are cords with free ends in the neck area which can become trapped during children's normal activities, causing injuries or strangulation. The product does not comply with the requirements of the General Product Safety Directive or EN 14682.
	17	Children's sweater/hooded sweatshirt/sweatshirt/children’s hoodie The product bears cords with free ends in the neck-hood area that can trap a child during his activities, leading to strangulation and/or injuries. These products do not comply with the requirements of the General Product Safety Directive or EN 14682.
	1	Bikini Set The product has functional cords with free ends in the upper area to be tied around the neck area. The cords may become trapped during various activities of a child, leading to injuries and strangulation. The product does not comply with the requirements of the General Product Safety Directive or EN 14682.

OPSS issues Product Safety Alerts on the UK market.

The following 1 alert regarding clothing, textile and fashion items was reported between week 21 and 24 of 2023.

Hazard	Number of alerts	Notes
Injury, entrapment	1	Children’s shorts The free drawstring at the waist can pose a serious risk during a child’s activities. The product does not meet the requirements of the General Product Safety Regulations 2005.

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 25 May 2023 to 22 June 2023, the CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) published the following recalls: 2 recalls of textile & leather products

Hazard	Number of alerts	Notes
Burn	2	Children’s pyjamas The recalled children’s pyjamas fail to meet the federal flammability standards for children’s sleepwear, posing a risk of burn injuries to children.