The EU countries and legislators reached an agreement on Thursday, April 10 to protect children from harmful chemicals, special ones that interrupt growth hormones, in toys. The negotiators of the European Parliament and the 27 EU states agreed to strengthen the rules about imported toys and the facts in the block.
“While EU’s toys security rules are among the strictest in the world, we must remain attentive, adapt the rules to emerging risks and ensure that security standards for all toys are met, either in Europe or abroad,” said Krzysztof Paszyk, Minister of Technology of Poland, which owns the rotating presidency of the EU.
The agreed text introduces a limited prohibition of “Forever Chemicals”, known as PFAS, only provides exemptions when chemicals are completely inaccessible to children. PFA, or author and Policuoroalquilo substances are a family of synthetic chemicals that take a long time to decompose.
Chronic exposure to low levels of chemicals has been linked to liver damage, high cholesterol, reduced immune responses, low birth weight and various types of cancer.
The representatives also agreed to expand the prohibition of chemicals to include other dangerous substances such as endocrine disruptors, which interfere with the body’s hormonal system.
“The new toy security regulation sends a strong signal: for the protection of our children, fair competition and Europe as commercial location,” said Marion Walsmann, the EU German legislator who headed the text in the European Parliament.
One in five products labeled as dangerous and eliminated from the market by the EU was a toy, according to Walsmann. The text will only become law once it is formally adopted by the EU states and parliament.
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