EU identifies cosmetics in RAPEX listing
Cosmetics ranked among the top five categories of dangerous consumer products
Cosmetics was one of the top five categories of dangerous products notified through the European Union’s (EU) rapid alert system on dangerous consumer products (RAPEX) in 2013, according to a report published on 25 March by the European Commission (EC). Out of the 2,364 notifications received last year, 106 were related to cosmetics (including hair care products). The sector comes fifth, after clothing, toys, electrical appliances and motor vehicles.
The notifications related to cosmetic products represented in 2013 were about 4% of total RAPEX notifications. These are made by consumer protection and customs authorities across the EU, with information being pooled and redistributed across the 28 member states through the RAPEX system. According to the EC, the prevalence of cosmetics problems can be partly explained by the high volumes of consumption and supply of products, although cosmetics are vulnerable because they are often chemical based, and hence prone to being made with potentially dangerous materials. The EU cosmetics regulation is also clear, helping consumer protection authorities decide if a product is in breach of EU laws. Indeed, the main risks of the notified dangerous cosmetics products were related to chemical and microbiological issues, according to the report.
A notification is made through RAPEX when an EU member state has identified and taken measures regarding a specific dangerous product. Other countries can react to it by following up on the issue in their own territories or by disagreeing with the risk assessment measures taken by the notifying country. Last year 51 reactions related to cosmetic products were registered in the RAPEX system. Britain was the EU country which identified the highest number of dangerous cosmetics on its territory: 20, followed by Germany with 15 notifications, and France and the Czech Republic with 11 each.
Most of the consumer products found to be dangerous on the EU market were exported from China, Brussels said. The next most common source was from Turkey, but there are also common notifications about cosmetics from EU and sub-Saharan African countries, where potentially dangerous hair products and skin whiteners are a problem export. According to the EU Consumer Protection Commissioner Neven Mimica, the country of origin or the manufacturer could not be identified for about 10% of the dangerous products notified.
“We need legislation that makes the traceability of a product much easier,” he told a briefing in Brussels on 25 March.
Products are defined as dangerous under RAPEX if they are found to pose a risk to the health and safety of consumers and workers, as well as to the environment. The notified dangerous cosmetics products were either withdrawn from the market, banned for sale, recalled from consumers or rejected by the customs authorities, according to the RAPEX annual report.
Carmen Paun, Brussels
