NEW TESTING METHODS IN THE COSMETICS INDUSTRY

What will be the impact on the cosmetics sector of the European Commission (EC)’s decision to adopt 100 new test methods for the regulatory safety testing of chemicals under REACH, the regulation for the registration, evaluation, authorisation and restriction of chemicals? The majority of the newly approved toxicity test methods do not involve animals, as the EC is committed to ultimately replacing them for testing. Under the new rules, internationally approved test methods that don’t involve animals are referred to directly in REACH, cutting thus on lengthy procedures. We would explore how will this impact the development of new products as experts say it is still hard to completely replace animal testing of chemicals to check, for instance, carcinogenicity and any long-term chronic toxicity, which can be dangerous for human beings. We would explore the pros and cons of some of the new test methods and to what extent will it be possible to completely replace animals. Besides, how will this goal impact exports and imports from some countries where tests with animals are still in place, such as China, which has a strong cosmetic industry?