Eurofins | Newsflash - February 2019 | Softlines & Leather
Three standards to improve the safety in babies’ sleeping environment
As already announced in our Eurofins News Flash Sept 2018 edition, from August 2018, three standards are available from CEN (European Committee for Standardisation) with the aim to minimize the main risks posed by products in the sleeping environment of babies and young children such as: chemical, flammability, hygiene, entrapment, suffocation hazards, etc…
New update of Candidate List of substances of very high concern (SVHCs)
On 15th January 2019, the ECHA (European Chemicals Agency) has released the new Candidate List of SVHCs. With the addition of 6 new substances, the current list of SVHCs contains 197 substances.
Update Interim Enforcement Policy for mattress pads
As already announced in our Eurofins News Flash January 2019 edition, from November 2018, the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (CPSC) Office of Compliance and Field Operations implemented an Interim Enforcement Policy for mattress pads subject to 16 C.F.R. Part 1632 – Standard for the Flammability of Mattresses and Mattress Pads. This interim policy allows mattress pad manufacturers to reduce testing from 6 to 2 mattress pad surfaces for each new prototype due to a shortage of standard reference material (SRM) cigarettes.
On 21st December 2018, CPSC published an update about this Interim which allows the use of commercially available king-size cigarettes: (85mm ± 2 mm), non-filtered and filled only with natural tobacco because of shortage of SRM cigarettes (even not enough for the proposed reduced testing).
Click here for getting the CPSC’s Update Interim.
Amendment of the Textile Labelling and Advertising Regulations
On December 12, 2018, Health Canada published Regulations amending the Textile Labelling and Advertising Regulations: SOR/2018-253(TLAR).
The amended regulations will not impose any costs on businesses or unduly impact other areas or sectors of the economy, with following main changes:
- Repeal paragraph 5(2)(d) of the TLAR
- Replace Subsections 12(3) to (9) of the Regulations with the following:
“(3) The Commissioner shall assign an identification number to a dealer if the dealer meets the requirements set out in subsections (1) and (2).
(4) A dealer may use the identification number on the label of a consumer textile article in place of the dealer’s name and postal address if the information required by paragraph (2)(b) is up-to-date.
(5) If a dealer transfers the identification number to a subsequent dealer, the subsequent dealer may use the identification number in place of the subsequent dealer’s name and postal address if
a) The subsequent dealer meets the requirements set out in subsection (1)
b) The information required by paragraph 2(b) is up-to-date.”
- Amend paragraph 14(3)(a) by removing the words “and subsection 11(3).”
- Replace paragraph 31(a)(ii) of the French version with “(ii) sous réserve de l’article 31.1 dans l’ordre de prédominance selon la masse, et”
These regulations came into force on the day when they were registered that is November 23, 2018 for more information click here.
Consolidated version of the Textile Labelling and Advertising Regulations (including this last amendment) can be found here.
Guidance for asbestos in consumer products
As already announced in our Eurofins News Flash November 2018 edition, the “Prohibition of Asbestos and Products Containing Asbestos Regulations (SOR/2018-196)” is effective from 30th December 2018.
These Regulations prohibit the import, sale, and use of processed asbestos fibers and products containing processed asbestos fibers and consumer products containing naturally occurring asbestos in greater than trace amounts, with some exceptions.
The “Trace amounts of asbestos in consumer products guidance” is now available through the Government of Canada website. Click here.
New MERCOSUR’s Resolution for labeling of textile products
On 16th December 2018, MERCOSUR approved Resolution No. 62/18 Technical Regulation on the labeling of textile products. The MERCOSUR member countries (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) must incorporate this resolution into their own legislation before 15th June 2019.
New Standards Release
Below a summary table with some recent standards release (Non-exhaustive).
Reference |
Title |
Date of Release |
Date of Enforcement |
Supersedes |
GB/T 23322-2018 |
Textiles—Determination of surfactant—Alkylphenols and Alkylphenol ethoxylates. |
2018-12-28 |
2019-07-01 |
GB/T 23322-2009 |
GB/T 24279.1-2018 |
Textiles—Determination of certain flame retardants—Part 1: Brominated flame retardants. |
2018-12-28 |
2019-07-01 |
GB/T 24279-2009 |
GB/T 5707-2018 |
Textiles—Bast fibres textile products—Terminology. |
2018-12-28 |
2019-07-01 |
GB/T 5707-1985 |
GB/T 20390.1-2018 |
Textiles―Assessment of the ignitability of bedding items―Part 1: Ignition source: smouldering cigarette. |
2018-12-28 |
2019-07-01 |
GB/T 20390.1-2006 |
GB/T 20390.2-2018 |
Textiles―Assessment of the ignitability of bedding items―Part 2: Ignition source: match-flame equivalent. |
2018-12-28 |
2019-07-01 |
GB/T 20390.2-2006 |
GB/T 36971-2018 |
Textiles—Tests for colour fastness—Assessment of migration of textile colours into polyvinyl chloride coatings. |
2018-12-28 |
2019-07-01 |
Initial release |
GB/T 36929-2018 |
Leather and fur—Chemical tests—Determination of perfluorooctane sulphonates(PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid(PFOA) content. |
2018-12-28 |
2019-07-01 |
Initial release |
GB/T 36973-2018 |
Textiles—Woven fabric descriptions. |
2018-12-28 |
2019-07-01 |
Initial release |
GB/T 36946-2018 |
Leather—Chemical tests—Determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons—Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. |
2018-12-28 |
2019-07-01 |
Initial release |
Below you will find a monthly summary of product recalls and alerts in Europe (Source “RAPEX”) and in the US (Source “CPSC”).
Europe
RAPEX (European Commission Rapid Alert System for dangerous non-food products – Alerts reported by EU national authorities).
The following 23 alerts regarding textile & leather products have been reported, from week 51 of 2018 until week 3 of 2019.
Type of Risk |
Number of alerts |
Notes |
Chemical |
4 |
Cadmium in metal parts of jewellery. |
Chromium (VI) in leather products and insole. |
||
Choking |
9 |
Children’s clothing – Choking hazard mainly due to small parts being detached from the article. |
Injuries |
6 |
Children’s clothing - Drawstrings too long in the waist area and not complying with applicable standard. |
Strangulation |
4 |
Children’s clothing – Risk of strangulation due to cords and drawstrings not complying with applicable standard. |
From 21st December 2018 to 20th January 2019, CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) has published the following recalls: 0 recalls regarding textile & leather products.
ZDHC Approved Chemical Verification Systems for the Textile and Leather Supply Chain
The responsible management of chemical inputs into consumer product supply chains is a key priority for many brands and retailers. There are many advantages to controlling input chemistry, yet, global supply chains are often complex with multiple tiers of stakeholders and positive change requires action from the entire value chain.
The Chem-MAP family developed by Eurofins | BLC, consists of c-MAP, b-MAP and m-MAP. These products provide specific chemical management services for the entire supply chain, from chemical supplier through manufacturing facility to brands and retailers, supporting best practice in terms of end to end supply chain chemical management systems.
Visit the Chem-MAP Site to Find Out More About How Chem-MAP Works here.