ECPI statement following the publication of the ECHA draft report on DINP and DIDP Toy Restrictions Re-evaluation

On 7 May 2012 the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) announced the launch of a public consultation on the ECHA draft report on the Toy Restrictions Re-evaluation of DINP and DIDP. This re-evaluation of the restrictions on non-classified high phthalates in toys and childcare articles which can be placed in the mouth is required by entry 52 of Annex XVII of REACH, which incorporated the original restrictions in Directive 2005/84/EC.

In the last year ECHA has conducted an in-depth evaluation of all relevant data, as originally requested by the European Commission in December 2010. ECHA’s draft report concludes that the existing restriction is justified and that no further risk reduction measures are needed to reduce the exposure of children to DINP and DIDP.

In terms of next steps the draft report will be subject to a three-month public consultation and ECHA’s Risk Assessment Committee (RAC) will also provide an opinion. Based on the feedback gathered, a final report will be issued by ECHA for decision on any further action by the European Commission.

The European Council for Plasticisers and Intermediates (ECPI) is committed to supporting the REACH process and has been following the ECHA restriction re-evaluation of DINP and DIDP closely, providing ECHA with new and existing studies in order to support the robust and in-depth evaluation. While a detailed review of the draft report still has to be carried out, ECPI welcomes the draft conclusion that additional risk reduction measures for DINP and DIDP are not required.

The protection of consumer and children’s health is of paramount importance to the plasticiser industry and ECPI looks forward to providing input during the public consultation.

About ECPI: The European Council for Plasticizers and Intermediates is a Brussels-based trade association representing the common interests of European manufacturers of plasticisers, alcohols and acids. Member companies are Arkema, BASF, Deza, Evonik, ExxonMobil, Oxochimie , Perstorp and ZAK. ECPI is a sector group of Cefic, the European Chemical Industry Council, which represents the interests of the European chemical industry.