REACH Update: November 2007

Posted: November 7, 2007

by Annelie Struessmann, PhD, CONUSBAT, Aachen, Germany

Editor’s Note: This edition of C&T Today, we welcome a new exclusive monthly feature, the “REACH Update,” by Annelie Struessmann, PhD. REACH legislation is continually evolving and it effects are only beginning to be realized. This column has been added to keep formulators, chemists and R&D managers updated of changes occurring in the legislation, and how those changes affect them. This column will also provide useful advice explaining how to comply. In addition to this e-newsletter column, Struessmann will field reader questions in a new online feature and her updates, as well as portions of the Q&A, will appear monthly in Cosmetics & Toiletries magazine, beginning in January 2008. Please help us welcome Annelie Struessmann, PhD, to the lineup.

An Introduction: How REACH Affects Cosmetics and Personal Care Manufacturers

REACH basically applies to all chemicals manufactured or marketed in the European Union (EU), including process chemicals as well as ingredients in consumer products or additives. Some exemptions apply and are specified in the REACH regulation.

However, ingredients in cosmetics and personal care are subject to almost all provisions of REACH. Cosmetics and toiletries are considered as preparations under REACH and each individual substance of a preparation has to be registered, either by the substance manufacturer or by the importer of the substance or of the preparation. The threshold for registration is 1 ton per year.