Hazardous substances – Rules and regulations in the EU
ECHA reports that from 1 January 2027, distributors will be explicitly identified as duty holders under Article 45 of the CLP Regulation. The Steps for industry page has been updated with clearer guidance on poison centre notification obligations. ECHA has also published a corrigendum to the Annex VIII Guidance (version 6.1) to clarify the responsibilities for the Unique Formula Identifier (UFI) labelling of imported mixtures.
ECHA’s fourth report (571 kB) on the operation of the Prior Informed Consent (PIC) Regulation shows that the workload of the implementation has remained high due to the constant addition of new chemicals subject to PIC and the increase in substances subject to explicit consent from non-EU importing countries prior to export.
Hazardous substances – Rules and regulations outside the EU
Australia: In September 2026, the government opened a consultation on the proposed listing of 10 classes of industrials chemicals to the IChEMS Register.
Gibraltar: SGS reports that Chemicals Regulations 2026 have been published, creating a framework for the management of chemical substances, whether supplied on their own, in mixtures or in articles. The legislation was made under the Treaty on Gibraltar and the European Union Act 2026.
New Zealand: EPA reports that the government has approved amendments to the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act restricting the three POPs chlorpyrifos, MCCPs and LC-PFCAs.
Serbia: SGS reports that legislation updating chemical restrictions and POP requirements has been published to further align with EU requirements.
US: Connecticut: The government has updated its webpage PFAS in Products. As of 1 July 2026, 12 product categories containing intentionally added PFAS are prohibited unless appropriately labelled. New Mexico: SGS reports that the government has issued guidance on labelling products containing intentionally added PFAS.
Pharmaceutical and drugs legislation
EU: EDQM reports that the EU Pharmacopoeia Commission has adopted a new chapter that establishes a new analytical procedure for controlling phenolic antioxidants in plastic materials.
US: Oklahoma: The government reports on new legislation HB 4454 (54 kB) that changes the packaging and labelling of medical marijuana products as of 1 November. Among other things, the legislation states that the products shall not be attractive to children.
Semen quality in young men after early childhood intake of dioxins and PFAS
There is evidence to suggest that early intake of dioxins and PFAS in the womb and during infancy could impair semen quality in adulthood. A study by scientists from the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) and the University of Ulm could not establish a link between early intake of PFAS and semen quality later in life. A negative trend was observed for dioxins, although this was not statistically significant.
PFAS levels in blood across the Netherlands remain too high
New research (in Dutch, 1.63 MB) by RIVM shows that in 2025, 71% of people in the Netherlands had PFAS levels in their blood above the health-based guidance value.
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