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European Commission’s Definition Roils Industries with Eye on Nanomaterials
Created by assoceditor on 14/06/2012 14:29:05

Some argue that guidance is too narrow and will force companies into costly compliance procedures.

An article has been published this month by Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News discussing industry opinion surrounding the European Commission (EC)’s recommended definition of nanomaterials, published in October 2011.  According to the article, this definition alarmed many in industry, who argued that the guidance is too narrow and will force companies into costly compliance procedures. 

“Implementing the proposed definition will add unnecessary burden for companies, leading to added costs and less efficient use of resources,” said Cefic, the European Chemical Industry Council, adding that the definition was “too broad in scope and therefore difficult to integrate into existing legislation in a meaningful way.” 

Steffi Friedrichs, the Director General of the Nanotechnology Industries Association (NIA), agreed, saying, “Instead of a business development possibility, it is much more a threat of costly product compliance. And that means, obviously, you have some companies that are only making a very small margin on moving from regular materials to nanomaterials that cannot afford now to market product. What we estimate, as a rule of thumb, is half of the companies that are now affected by this would not have been thinking of their material as a nanomaterial before.”

Industry analysts say key future decisions will affect the cost of the EC’s definition, such as: will member states implement nanoparticle policies, or will the EC implement a Europe-wide policy; and, will nanomaterials need to be authorised and registered separately from their larger chemical counterparts. 

Jeremy Warren, CEO of NanoSight, argues that the definition would actually have a long-term positive effect on corporations, as it reduces risk. “Because it comes from the European government and because the number of scientists and the scientific committees working on this have consulted so widely and are so eminent and have thought this through, its provenance gives it a lot of weight,” he said. 

Still, for nanotechnology to thrive in Europe, the commission and member nations need to come to a consensus on nanomaterial standards, with the ideal result being a single pan-European standard, according to the article’s author, Alex Philippidis, the senior news editor at Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News.

Source: Meridian Nanotechnology & Development News Summary; Original article from Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News

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