Supported by most political forces, the EU institutions advanced a proposal to ban toxic chemicals from toys sold in European markets. Those chemicals could pose considerable health risks for kids.
Category
đź—ž
NewsTranscript
00:00Hi, I'm Stefan Grobe. Dinosaur, dragons or dolls? Chemicals that pose risks to children's health
00:22and development will now be banned from toys sold in the European Union. The European Parliament
00:27and the Council struck a provisional agreement on stricter safety requirements for manufacturers
00:33and sellers, including those operating on online platforms. The ban will hit chemicals
00:38that can cause cancer, alter DNA or harm reproductive organs.
00:44Dangerous products are nearly everywhere in our daily lives. Most of them are found in
00:49cosmetics – 36% according to the European Commission. But strikingly, toys are the second
00:56largest product category found to be the most hazardous. And the hazards were most often
01:02related to chemicals. In the list of dangerous products, toys are followed by electrical appliances
01:08and cars. One in five products flagged as dangerous and withdrawn from the EU market is a toy. That's
01:15why before introducing a toy to the market, manufacturers will now be required to carry
01:20out safety assessments covering all potential risks. The toys now need a digital product
01:27passport in the form of a QR code showing they meet safety standards. That, of course,
01:32begs the question, have people been aware of the inherent danger in toys?
01:37I think the rules are already pretty strict, so I think they should maybe be more strict
01:44on TEMU and the Chinese webshops.
01:47But I think that it should be like food or other products. Even in the mode, we try to
01:52more reduce the provenance or even the composition. So I think that it should be the same for
01:59children, even more if it's for children.
02:02In any case, the parents always comprise, that the toys don't have anything that can
02:07start, that they can carry out, that they can carry out, that they can carry out.
02:10I think that in general, they are sure that they are safe.
02:12It might be like a type of material that can be made, if not as soon as possible, but
02:17for 10 years later, it won't cause any problems, such problems, such problems, such problems,
02:22such problems, such problems, such problems, such problems, such problems.
02:26Let's bring in Gerardo Fortuna now, who has covered this story for Euronews. Gerardo,
02:41good to see you. What is the backstory of these rules right now?
02:46These are the kind of EU rules that need a refresher from time to time. The Toy Safety Directive
02:53actually dates back to 2009, and since then, science has moved on quite a bit,
02:59particularly in understanding unsafe chemicals. For instance, all the rules didn't cover things
03:06like endocrine disruptors, which are affecting hormones, or also PFAS, the so-called forever
03:13chemicals, and now they're both banned.
03:15This ban on toxic chemicals, was there any resistance?
03:19Not really on the substance, because in the end we're talking about the safety of products
03:24that are intended to children, even newborn, so there's enough consensus about tightening the
03:30rules. The real issue was more on the enforcement. Consumer groups made it very clear. It's not how
03:39strict the rules will be, but how you can enforce them, and particularly with the rise of online
03:45marketplaces. It's very difficult for market surveillance authorities to check on every toy
03:52entering the EU market. So I think that the challenge lies more on enforcement.
03:58That's a good point. Many of the hazardous toys come from China and are sold on Chinese marketplaces,
04:06platforms like Teemu. How are these toys going to be monitored?
04:11This is indeed the key part of the new rules. All these toys will need a digital product passport,
04:20which essentially consists into digital record that travels together with the document. So this would
04:27make it easier for customs or market inspectors to check on the toys. And at the same time, the rules
04:34make sure that this big platform complies with the EU broader laws, such as the digital
04:41service act, the DSA, so that even big platform will comply with the same rules as everyone else.
04:49But even the best safety legislation cannot prevent some from selling illicit toys, which is why Europol
04:56has issued guidelines on how to recognize fake toys. If the price is too good to be true, if mandatory
05:05labels are missing, if the toy is sold in a clear plastic bag instead of regular packaging,
05:11or if the brand name or instructions contain spelling mistakes, then don't buy it.
05:16Joining me now is Marion Waldsmann, Vice Chair of the Legal Affairs Committee in the European
05:22Parliament and the lead negotiator on the toy safety file. Welcome to the program. So,
05:29zunächst einmal gab es in dieser Sache eine breite politische Unterstützung und Zustimmung?
05:34Ja, es gab eine breite politische Zustimmung zu der Gesetzgebung, sowohl zu dem Kompromissvorschlag,
05:43auch zu der Tatsache, dass man jetzt eine Verordnung verabschiedet hat. Und es war breiter Konsens,
05:51dass die bisherige Regelung, die aus dem Jahr 2009 stammt, absolut ĂĽberarbeitungsbedĂĽrftig ist. Und auch die
05:57Veränderung von der Richtlinie zur Verordnung war allgemein konsensfähig. Was steht hinter der Einführung eines
06:04digitalen Produktpasses? Der digitale Produktpass wird es zukĂĽnftig viel, viel leichter machen,
06:11nachzuvollziehen, ob Spielzeug auch gesetzeskonform hergestellt wurde und sowohl fĂĽr die Verbraucher einen
06:19Mehrwert bieten, die Informationen ĂĽber Bestandteile, Inhaltsstoffe und anderes erhalten, aber auch die
06:27Kontrollbehörden, die Marktüberwachungsbehörden natürlich einfacher auch nachvollziehen können, ob der
06:33Hersteller sich an die Qualitätsvorgaben gehalten hat. Sie haben die Hersteller angesprochen. Wie viel
06:39Zeit bekommen die Unternehmen, um ihre Produktion anzupassen? Uns war es sehr, sehr wichtig, dass diese
06:46Verordnung dann auch ordentlich umsetzbar ist und dazu braucht man eben eine Ăśbergangszeit von 54 Monaten,
06:53das heißt viereinhalb Jahre, um alle technischen Anpassungsprozesse vornehmen zu können. Ich
07:00wollte es nochmal ansprechen. Wie sehen jetzt die nächsten gesetzlichen Schritte aus? Also der nächste
07:05Schritt ist, dass noch einige technische Nachbesserungen, Formulierungen gemacht werden mĂĽssen. Dann wird
07:12der Binnenmarktausschuss nochmal sein Einverständnis geben mit einer Abstimmung. Dann geht es im Oktober in das
07:17Plenum und da kommt es zur finalen Abstimmung und dann eben die Veröffentlichung im Amtsblatt der
07:25Europäischen Union und ab dann tritt es in Kraft und dann entfaltet es Wirkungs ab 2029.
07:32Mit den Revisen Regeln, die Europäische Union ist, die safesten Toys möglich sind.
07:39Kinder werden besser protected gegen invisible dangers, such as harmful chemicals,
07:44including Endocrine Disruptors und PFAS, also known as Forever Chemicals,
07:51und deren Eltern werden alle Informationen sie brauchen, ĂĽber jede einzelne Toys.