Toys & Hardlines regulatory updates August 2022
Changes to product safety standards
On 16 August 2022, the European Commission published Decision 2022/1401 which amends the Implementing Decision (EU) 2019/1698 as regards to European standards for certain childcare articles, children’s furniture, gymnastic equipment, lighters, and information and communication technology equipment.
The latest consultations by the European Commission related to toys and childcare related products.
The following table summarises the most recent standards updates and upcoming dates of withdrawal (non-exhaustive).
Changes to the period of validity of the EU Ecolabel criteria
On 18 July 2022, the European Commission published Decision 2022/1229 which amends the period of validity of the EU Ecolabel criteria for several product categories.
The latest publications by DGCCRF (Direction générale de la concurrence, de la consommation et de la répression des fraudes) related to consumer products include.
Last publication related to circular economy and consumer goods
In France, the Ministry of Ecological Transition oversees matters related to the circular economy and waste. Many changes planned for the French market are planned in 2022 and it is therefore important to be updated. Below is a summary of the latest publications (non-exhaustive list).
Updated requirements for food contact materials
On 1 July 2022, amendment (3348384-1027396-VGP) to the Dutch Commodities Act on Packaging and Consumer Articles became effective. It was published by the Ministry of Health, Wellbeing and Sports of the Netherlands in April 2022.
CPSC Proposes to Rules to Ban Crip Bumpers and Inclined Sleepers for Infants
On 16 May 2022, U.S. President Joe Biden signed into law the Safe Sleep for Babies Act of 2021, banning the manufacture and sale of crib bumpers and certain inclined sleepers for infants.
CPSC Updates Safety Standard for Sling Carriers
On 19 August 2022, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued a direct final rule (16 CFR 1228) to update the mandatory Safety Standard for Sling Carriers. The final rule incorporates the latest version of ASTM F2907-22, Standard Consumer Safety Specifications for Sling Carriers, with one modification.
Delaware Passes New Flame Retardants Law
On 4 August 2022, Delaware passed HB 77 to restrict a variety of flame-retardant chemicals in certain consumer products. The effective date is 1 July 2023. Please see Table 1 below to see a summary of the restrictions.
California Proposition 65 Reformulations
California Proposition 65 is the ‘Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986’, which has been effective for almost 30 years. Due to the implementation of California Proposition 65, more and more court cases are settled to reduce the exposure of carcinogenic and reproductive chemicals by reformulating the consumer products containing such chemicals.
China Releases New Product Standards
The Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has recently issued various new industry and national product standards.
Regulatory proposals notified to the WTO
The following table summarises the most recent notifications made to the World Trade Organization (WTO) (non-exhaustive).
Update of ISO standard for food contact enameled articles
In April 2022, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) published ISO 4531:2022 for testing food contact enameled articles. This second edition contains several changes when compared to the 2018 edition.
RAPEX (European Commission Rapid Alert System for dangerous non-food products – Alerts reported by EU national authorities).
OPSS issues Product Safety Alerts on the UK market. The following alerts regarding toys and childcare products were reported between week 29 and week 33 of 2022.
From 28 July 2022 to 25 August 2022, the CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) published the following recalls.
