Is the Upcoming EU REACH Microplastics Restriction Going to be Implemented in the UK?

The final draft of the EU-wide Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals (REACH) Regulation’s microplastics restriction was published in September 2022; the final version is expected to be issued in 2023.  This restriction will have an extremely significant impact on all cosmetic product categories because its scope includes any solid, synthetic, non-biodegradable polymer in any cosmetic product.

This proposal will not be applicable in the GB market, which follows UK REACH instead as of 1 January 2021.  There may however be legislative activities on this matter in the UK.

In order to provide more information on the divergence between the EU and UK on the REACH microplastics restriction, CTPA is therefore running the webinar ‘Microplastics - How the EU REACH Restriction will Impact your Cosmetic Formulations’ on 14 December 2022 at 14.00-15.30.  The webinar will cover the following key topics:

1. Origins and development of the restriction
2. Current stage of the legislative process
3. Timelines and transition periods
4. How companies can assess the impact on their products
5. Tools to help companies plan for compliance
6. Possible legislative activity in the UK
7. Advocacy work conducted by Cosmetics Europe and CTPA

Companies willing to attend can register here.  The webinar is free for CTPA members, and available for a payable fee of £75 for non-members of the Association.