Revision of the REACH regulation – a BusinessEurope position paper

Introduction

• Chemicals are key components of materials used in every-day life, from the food we eat to the medicines we take, from the cosmetics we apply to the devices we use or the clothes we wear. As the EU aims for climate neutrality by 2050, chemicals are integral to low-carbon, zero-pollution, and resource-efficient technologies like wind turbines, solar panels, and chips. Achieving EU Green Deal objectives depends on a wide range of chemicals.
• To develop and use innovative solutions and socially relevant technologies in the future that might be essential for the functioning of the society, it must remain possible to produce and use hazardous chemicals if there are safe use conditions.
• While the intention to revise REACH is framed as part of the drive towards simplification, many of the current proposals risk introducing new layers of complexity and administrative burden. The revision of the REACH Regulation must be in line with the Commission’s general objective of making Europe more competitive, more resilient and more independent. In the spirit of “Making Europe simpler and faster”, the revision of the REACH Regulation should be carried out with a sense of proportionality and must avoid introducing further and unnecessary complexity. Changes to the existing regulations that would further reduce both effectiveness and efficiency (e.g., GRA, MAF) should be prevented. Also, new measures must not lead to the creation of additional bureaucratic hurdles for companies.
• The envisaged approaches presented by the European Commission at the CARACAL-Meeting in April 2025 for the revision of REACH represents a paradigm shift, away from a proven riskbased approach towards an unproven hazard-based approach. A thorough impact assessment is necessary to evaluate cost-benefit trade-offs, as manufacturers and users of chemicals along the entire value chain would be significantly affected. The EU already has one of the world’s most advanced set of chemical regulations, and any revision must balance safety, innovation, and competitiveness.