Conference targets compliance with EU REACH regulations

The conference, which has been organized in conjunction with the Philadelphia US Export Assistance Center (USEAC), Mid-Atlantic District Export Council (DEC) and BDP International - a global logistics firm specializing in the chemical industry - will focus on the new environmental and safety regulations for exporting chemicals and products containing chemicals to the 27 member states of the European Union.

The policy is expected to go into effect on June 1 and will impact a broad spectrum of U.S. companies and industry sectors, including both cosmetic and toiletries producers, as well as ingredients suppliers.

The fact that the conference is being held in Philadelphia ties in with the fact that chemicals and related products are the leading export for both Pennsylvania and Delaware, as well as the fact that many cosmetics companies and their suppliers are based in nearby New Jersey.

The conference will take place on March 1, in a morning session to be held at the Marriott Courtyard in Philadelphia and will feature speakers including commercial specialist Flavie Guerin of CS Brussels, as well as compliance experts from USEAC's European Office, together with compliance attorneys from Allen & Overy.

The organizers are charging a $95 registration fee, which includes a continental breakfast, all presentations and one-on-one sessions with speakers. Registration can be completed on line at www.bdpinternational.com.

The conference is the latest in a number of tools to be launched with the aim of helping US companies comply with REACH.

It is rivaled by the Color Pigments Manufacturers Association (CPMA), which has organised a special workshop during its 2007 international conference on high performance and traditional color pigments, The Value of Color.

Likewise, Irish software provider CREMe's Research Network (CRN) has launched an online portal designed to analyse current data concerning compliance with REACH in an effort to help inform companies about specific requirements for individual chemicals.

The European Commission has estimated that REACH will cost the chemical industry between €2.8bn ($4.2bn) and €5.2bn over the next decade, while it would save the industry there €54bn euros over 30 years because a smaller number of people would become ill as a result of exposure to dangerous chemicals.

The legislation, which EU nations have until 2018 to implement, will affect the cosmetics industry by targeting both the chemicals used in packaging of products, as well as some used in formulations.

The EU previously relied on a negative list to regulate the use of chemicals, which meant any chemical not on the EU blacklist could normally be used for the production of cosmetics.