The European Commission has recently decided to postpone the revision of the regulation for evaluating and authorizing chemicals (REACH) to Q4 2023. In response, 22 global consumer companies have called on the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, to reverse the decision to postpone the consultation process. The open letter to Von der Leyen has been signed by Adidas, Decathlon, Houdini, Mammut, H&M, Ikea and many more (read the full letter here).
The REACH Regulation was adopted in 2006 to better protect human health and the environment from the risks of chemicals while promoting the competitiveness of the EU chemical industry. The regulation has not been revised for almost 20 years, while new chemical substances widely used by industry are now identified as harmful to the environment and human health.
According to the open letter, the revision “is absolutely necessary for a more efficient regulation, as well as better support for chemical substitution and non-toxic circular economy. Our companies all have ambitious chemicals management. We work actively and put significant resources into phasing out and substituting the most harmful chemicals from our products and processes. Our companies always aim to stay ahead of developments in chemical regulation. This is the most beneficial business strategy, and it is also what our customers expect from us. For this and many other reasons, we fully support the ambition and the aims of the chemicals strategy for sustainability presented by the EU Commission in 2020.”
The Belgian federal minister for climate, environment, sustainable development and green deal, Zakia Khattabi, has also published a letter on the issue, arguing for a redraft, ideally in the second quarter of 2023, to work towards a final revision before the end of this EU legislature.
