FERTILIZING PRODUCTS
Under Standardization Request M/564 (and amendments), CEN/TC 223 ‘Soil improvers and growing media’ and CEN/TC 260 ‘Fertilizers and liming material’ will keep developing and validating testing methods that will allow manufacturers to analyze their products and prove their compliance with relevant requirements under the Fertilising Product Regulation (Reg (EU) 2019/1009). The ENs will also be used by notified bodies and testing bodies for conformity assessment activities.
The interlaboratory studies for the validation of the data will see the involvement of many testing bodies all over Europe.
PYROTECHNIC ARTICLES
Directive 2013/29/EU on pyrotechnic articles is a recast of Directive 2007/23/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, which has introduced some changes about the essential safety requirements applicable to pyrotechnic articles.
Through the Standardization Request on pyrotechnic articles (M/583), the European Commission asked CEN to revise the relevant harmonized standards in support of Directive 2013/29/EU, with the aim of updating the references currently published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) on how to prove the presumption of conformity of pyrotechnic articles.
In 2025, CEN/TC 212 'Pyrotechnic articles' will continue the revision of 31 European and International standards. The revision will ensure the full alignment of the standards with Directive 2013/29/EU, detailing technical specifications related to the Essential Safety Requirements. It will be based on risk assessment and risk reduction methodologies, and reflect the generally acknowledged state of the art. Moreover, the revisions will introduce new elements compared to the previous editions, such as the environmental requirements (biodegradability) on F1-F4 articles.
NANOTECHNOLOGIES
Standardization activities carried out in CEN/TC 352 ‘Nanotechnologies’ address four specific challenges: 1) metrology for physical and chemical characteristics, performance evaluation, and quality control; 2) industrial health and safety as well as environmental concerns; 3) regulation and consumer concerns; and 4) food additives.
In 2025, CEN/TC 352 will continue working on two Technical Specifications (TSs) on nanotechnologies and nanomaterials mandated by M/461: CEN/TS ‘Nanotechnologies – Guidelines for the characterization of nanoobjects-containing additives in food products’, and CEN/TS ‘Nanotechnologies – Guidance on the determination of aggregation and agglomeration state of nano-objects’.
The TC will also develop several other deliverables, such as CEN/TS ‘Nanotechnologies – Quick start guide for deploying a relevant nano health and safety risk management’ and the revision of EN ISO 21356-1 ‘Nanotechnologies – Structural characterization of graphene – Part 1: Graphene from powders and dispersions’.
Some of these deliverables will enhance the capabilities of managing health and safety for workers, for the environment, as well as for society. Some will enhance the capabilities to develop innovation and manage economic exchanges. Others still will also enhance the capabilities to fulfil emerging regulations.
PAHs IN PLASTICS AND RUBBER
In 2025, CEN/TC 462 ‘Regulated chemicals in products’ will keep working on a new standard, EN 17937 'Regulated chemicals in products - Determination of the content of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) by gas chromatography coupled to mass-spectrometry in plastic and rubber in articles supplied to the general public that come into direct contact with human skin and oral cavity'.
This project is carried out under Standardization Request M/556 with regards to compliance with maximum content criteria of PAH in rubber and plastic components of articles placed on the market for supply to the general public, in support of Regulation (EC) No. 1907/2006.
The standard will support Annex XVII of REACH (entry 50) concerning the eight carcinogenic PAHs it lists. It will also harmonize the analytical methods for determining the individual concentration of the eight carcinogenic PAHs concerned in the plastic and rubber components of articles falling within the scope of the restriction, and ensure that only articles that do not pose an unacceptable risk to human health or the environment may be legally placed on the EU market for supply to the general public.
CEN/TC 462 will also start working on two new ENs: ‘Regulated chemicals in products – Determination of the content of certain Phthalates by gas chromatography in plastic in articles supplied to the general public that come into direct contact with human skin and oral cavity’, and ‘Regulated chemicals in products – Screening of substances of very high concern (SVHC) – General principles’.
PLASTICS