North American firms face Reach disruption - PwC

11 March 2008 15:30  [Source: ICIS news]

LONDON (ICIS news)--Many North American companies are unaware of the new European chemicals legislation Reach and may miss important deadlines required if they are to continue exporting chemicals to Europe, said financial services firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) on Tuesday.

 

“The widespread lack of awareness raises concerns that North American companies may miss important Reach deadlines and, as a result, suffer significant business disruptions,” said PwC.

 

PwC also found that most North American companies affected by Reach had not discussed the European law with customers and suppliers to determine the impact on their supply chains.

 

A global survey by PwC showed that while European firms were the most aware of Reach, North American firms had fallen behind by a considerable margin.

 

Reach - the Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals - came into force on 1 June 2007 and requires firms to ensure that their chemical products are safe for consumers. The legislation will help to identify and replace harmful substances.

 

The company interviewed 241 senior executives across six industries in 29 countries. It found the chemicals sector was leading the way on awareness followed by pharmaceuticals; industrial manufacturing; forest, paper and packaging; retail and consumer; then automotive.

 

The deadline for pre-registering chemicals for Reach is 1 June to 1 December 2008.

By: Mark Watts
+44 20 8652 3214

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