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November 2024

Lead Story

ANEC webinar - Why tethered caps are a big problem for many consumers in everyday life and what can be done about it? 

The DIN Consumer Council (Germany) recently released a study on the usability and consumer perception of tethered caps for beverage containers.

On the 22 November (10:30 -11:30 CET) we shall have the pleasure  of welcoming Stefanie Scholz, Project Manager at DIN, who will run us through the findings of this study.

Some highlights and findings of the study are:

• consumers do not feel informed about the background to the implementation of the tethered caps
• consumers perceive no added value for environmental protection
• the needs of consumers when it comes to tethered caps have not been sufficiently taken into account so far by the Single-Use Plastics Directive, by standardisation (EN 17665) or by the packaging industry
• vulnerable consumer groups to some extent have major problems with handling plastic bottles/beverage containers with tethered cap
• the design of the tethered caps needs to be improved for usability purposes

Bostjan Okorn, Chair of the ANEC Sustainability WG, will moderate with the support of Michela Vuerich, ANEC Lead Programme Manager.

Register for the webinar here. We look forward to seeing you on 22 November! 

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International Product Safety Week

The 9th edition of the International Product Safety Week (#IPSW), under the theme ‘Bridges for Global Product Safety’, brought together over 700 participants from almost 70 countries during the week of 14 October. It provided an opportunity for authorities and safety experts to discuss latest developments.

ANEC Senior Manager Tania Vandenberghe participated in the panel ‘Expanding Bridges: Inclusiveness in product safety’ during which we presented our campaign to improve standards for electrical household appliances to take into account the use by vulnerable consumers.

The event was opened by MEP Anna Cavazzini, Chair of the European Parliament’s Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee (IMCO) and by Didier Reynders, EU Commissioner for Justice and Consumers. They stressed the importance of efficient and effective enforcement of EU product safety legislation, as well as the importance of international cooperation.

 (photo credit: EC)

The need for (better) data was stressed by all panellists. ANEC said it was very pleased with the EC initiative on anthropometric data, and hoped the EC will also set up a pan-European injury and accident database. The audience saw data as key in raising product safety further. We also called for a clear legal framework that obliges the drafting of inclusive standards and empowers the EC and Member State authorities to act when standards are not. Better implementation and enforcement are therefore added priorities.

(photo credit: EC)

ANEC meets with ICRT

The ANEC Secretariat was delighted to welcome Sílvia Gomes da Silva from our sister organisation, ICRT, on 7 October. Sílvia discussed potential new collaborations with Senior Managers Chiara Giovannini and Tania Vandenberghe, as well as meeting with ANEC/DG Stephen Russell.

Domestic Appliances

ANEC Domestic Appliances WG meets

The annual meeting of the ANEC Domestic Appliances (DOMAP) WG took place in Brussels on 17 & 18 October. The meeting was chaired by Javier García Fernández from OCU (Spain). The WG welcomed new experts from the Netherlands and Germany.

The first day was a joint session with the ANEC Sustainability WG. Experts from both WGs discussed eco-design, energy labelling, and the performance of household appliances and other consumer products.

The second day discussed issues related to the safety & accessibility of electrical household appliances, gas appliances and machinery, as well as products falling under the General Product Safety Regulation (such as ladders and barbecues).
The meeting gave our experts the chance to reflect in person on their involvement in technical bodies dealing with domestic appliances at both European and international level, and to look ahead to future standardisation work.

The Working Group congratulated Javier García Fernández and Christine Heemskerk (UK) on their appointments as Chair and Vice-Chair of the ANEC DOMAP WG for the term 2025-2027.

Carbon monoxide detectors

On 30 October, ANEC and the UK consumers’ association, Which?, attended an ad hoc meeting of CENELEC TC 216 ‘Gas detectors’, to discuss possible improvements to the standard EN 50291-1 for carbon monoxide (CO) alarms.

Which? presented the results of their latest comparative tests of CO detectors, which showed that none of the unbranded detectors bought from online marketplaces fulfilled any of the requirements examined. All were missing some information from the labelling, instructions or packaging. ANEC highlighted its main concern, i.e. that the CO activation levels in EN 50291-1 and EN 50291-2 are far too high, and above the human safe levels of exposure as recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

In 2018 and 2019, ANEC disagreed with the adoption of the standards for this reason. Since then, there is more evidence that long-term exposure to very small doses of CO may lead to major illnesses, including heart failure, dementia and Parkinson’s disease. WHO guidance on acceptable CO exposure concentrations in humans therefore needs to be taken into account.

Moreover, the standards do not sufficiently protect consumers against CO poisoning in relation to instructions and warnings. If an alarm goes off, the most important for a consumer is to know what to do. At least the following advice needs to be added to the apparatus: “in case of emergency, immediately evacuate the dwelling and call 112”.

In our opinion, it therefore makes no sense for the standard:

• to include only a warning in the user instructions that the dwelling should be evacuated in case of an alarm. This is critical information which needs to appear on the apparatus.
• to put the number of the European Standard on the detector. This will not save lives in case of an emergency. It can easily be moved to the instruction manual.\

We applaud the initiative of CENELEC TC 216 to look into the issue and to update the standards. We look forward to further discussions.

Sustainability

ANEC Sustainability WG meets

The annual meeting of the ANEC Sustainability WG took place in Brussels on 16 & 17 October, with Boštjan Okorn (ZPS, Slovenia) in the chair. The occasion brought together a diverse group of experts who all contributed valuable insights.

The meeting started with a lively debate on future actions for ANEC concerning hazardous chemicals in consumer products. Participants exchanged updates on national consumer testing initiatives, highlighting best practices and emerging challenges. We continued with a review of our activities at international and European level on circular economy and climate change related standardisation.

Our experts continued their debate on the second day especially on sustainable finance, sustainable construction and sustainable cities. They received updates on the SmartlivingEPC project, in which ANEC is a partner. BEUC colleagues joined the meeting to update us on their activities on chemicals legislation and environmental labelling.

The meeting also saw a comprehensive discussion on ANEC's new standardisation initiatives focused on textiles and reusable tableware, and forthcoming implementation of the soon-to-be-adopted Packaging Regulation.

The meeting closed with a joint session with the ANEC DOMAP WG, focussing on energy labelling and the performance of household appliances.

Chemicals

New restrictions regarding PFAS

On 20 September, the EC published Regulation (EU) 2024/2462 which added a new restriction on undecafluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA), its salts and PFHxA-related substances under Annex XVII to the REACH regulation. PFHxA belongs to the group of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).

The new restriction follows a dossier submitted by Germany, and opinions of ECHA, that led the EC to conclude that the use and market placement of these chemicals pose an unacceptable risk to human health and the environment. Therefore, the risk should be addressed on an EU-wide basis.

The restriction applies to textiles, leather, furs and hides in products for the general public; footwear for the general public; paper and cardboard used as food contact materials within the scope of Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004; mixtures for the general public; cosmetic products as defined in Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009; fire-fighting foams for training, testing, public fire services and civil aviation. The restriction entered into force on 10 October 2024. However, transitional periods ranging from 18 months to 5 years will apply to various product categories.

Meanwhile in September 2024, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) updated the ongoing scientific evaluation of the proposal to restrict per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). ECHA’s scientific committees, Risk Assessment Committee (RAC) and the Socio-Economic Analysis Committee (SEAC), are working to assess several critical sectors that are relying heavily on PFAS, such as Textiles, Upholstery, Leather, and Apparel and Food Contact Materials and Packaging.

Discussions continue in November and more sectors will be studied in 2025. The decision on the PFAS restriction rests with the EC.

More on Forever Chemicals

In preparation for the ANEC Sustainability WG meeting, ANEC Chemicals Project Team experts considered interesting studies carried out in some of our experts’ national organisations, as well as studies carried out at the European level.

These included:

1. A test carried out by the Danish Consumer Council THINK Chemicals on tableware bought from the online retailer Temu. It contained excessive levels of PFAS, "forever chemicals" that are harmful to health and prohibited in Denmark when in direct contact with food. Read “PFAS found in disposable tableware from Temu”.
2. A new European study on children’s drinking bottles, to which THINK Chemicals contributed, found that 22 out of 39 plastic drinking bottles, bought in five European countries, released the endocrine-disrupting phthalate DiBP after being washed 20 times in the dishwasher.
3. The European Environment Agency (EEA) briefing Safe and sustainable alternatives could reduce use of PFAS in textiles and enhance reuse and recycling.
4. Food Packaging Forum (FPF) latest peer-reviewed publication on widespread evidence of food contact chemicals in humans published in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology.                                           

These findings provide us with useful evidence supporting our joint call for a comprehensive restriction of PFAS across many applications, as well as for an appropriate implementation of the Packaging & Packaging Waste Regulation when adopted in the next months. They also corroborate our call for stringent requirements in the future revision of the Food Contact Materials Regulation and increased promotion of inert materials.

Ecodesign

Ecodesign and Energy Labelling for Computers

Following the recent Consultation Forum meeting, BEUC and ANEC welcomed the EC’s progress toward updated Ecodesign and energy labelling requirements for computers. We look to the EC to finalise the work as soon as possible and ensure an early application of the new rules so consumers can benefit from them.

Further improvements are necessary to ensure consumers can continue to use their products for longer and repair them easily. Our key recommendations include provisions for longer software support to prevent the software-induced premature obsolescence of computers.

BEUC and ANEC also emphasise the need for minimum power limits that drive energy efficiency in mainstream computers, not just high-performance models. We advise organised consumer testing of the proposed energy label to confirm its effectiveness in helping users compare products easily. Although we support the proposed development of a repair score for computers, we regret to see that it does not adequately account for the cost of repair, which remains the main barrier to repair for consumers.

Digital society

ANEC at ETSI Security Conference 2024

ANEC was delighted to be invited to present consumer views at the ETSI Security Conference 2024: ‘Improving Security by Improving Communication with Individual Consumers’, on 15 October 2024 in Sophia Antipolis, France. ANEC was also one of three speakers in the panel session, ‘Societal Impacts of Technology’.

ANEC, represented by Gill Whitney (an expert in ETSI TC CYBER), pointed out the raised risks to consumers on line, compared with corporate users supported by professional expertise. Furthermore, ANEC presented the need for consumers to be kept safe online and to be fully aware of their situation. This requires consumers to be helped by communication that is bidirectional, accessible, useable and timely.

As a solution, we highlighted the standard, ISO 22458:2022 ‘Consumer vulnerability – Requirements and guidelines for the design and delivery of inclusive service’. Lastly, we recommended that standards take into account the different experiences, abilities, and knowledge of consumers.

ANEC Digital Society WG meets

The 44th ANEC Digital Society WG meeting took place in Brussels on 10 & 11 October.

Our experts discussed consumer relevant issues in standardisation e.g. Artificial Intelligence, Privacy & cybersecurity standardisation, Safety of audio-video equipment, Smart & sustainable cities and communities, eRecognition and Biometrics. We were delighted to have the AI Office of the European Commission present the AI Act and revised AI SReq.

ANEC speaks at Privacy Symposium

The Privacy Symposium hosted its 8th edition on 8 October 2024 in Brussels. ANEC was invited to speak on Regulatory Perspectives and AI Enforcement. Chiara Giovannini, Deputy-Director General, representing ANEC, explained the role of standards deriving from the AI Act and the presumption of conformity. Chiara continued on the complexity of such standards that need to play a crucial role in protecting consumers, especially in delicate areas such as AI Risk Management and Human Rights. Even if ANEC is involved in drafting of these standards, which are meant to be available by April 2025, there is still much room for others in civil society to have their say in the process.

Services

EU Tourism

At an EU Tourism Stakeholder Event organised on 14 October, DG GROW and DG ENV presented recent legislative initiatives and their impact on the tourism sector: these ranged from the AI Act, to new travel requirements and new rules to fight greenwashing.

ANEC Lead Programme Manager, Michela Vuerich, had the chance to connect with other stakeholders on their respective perspectives on legislative files of common interest.

The EU Tourism Platform unveiled at the meeting allows access to tourism events, funding opportunities, and EU Tourism Policies. The EC highlighted how the new College features a Commissioner with Tourism in their title and portfolio. The Mission letter to Apostolos Tzitzikostas, designated Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism, focuses widely on sustainable transport.

At international level, ANEC continues to follow developments in ISO TC 228 ‘Tourism and related services’.

Traffic & Mobility

ANEC at UNECE workshop

During 15-17 October, ANEC attended the in-person UNECE workshop on Children Left in Vehicles, hosted by the Australian Ministry of Transport in Brisbane.

The meeting paved the path for regulatory measures to be taken in this field, a priority for ANEC in preventing the all-too-common vehicular heatstroke of young children.

ANEC played a leading role in the discussions and made a presentation on aftermarket products that could prevent children being left behind in cars.

Member news from Spain

A consumer booklet on AI

OCU, an active member of the ANEC Digital Society WG, has just published a new booklet on AI. This offers consumers a clear overview of what this new technology stands for and how it can be seen to impact consumers’ lives.
Read the presentation here or take a sneak peak into the booklet itself.

In Memoriam

Remembering Monika Klenovec

It is with great sadness that we share the news of the passing of our long-standing ANEC Accessibility WG representative, Monika Klenovec, in mid-November 2024.

Words cannot express how saddened we are to learn about Monika’s passing. Over many years, we were privileged to work with her to bring her vision to life: “Let us make a society for all ages and diversities a reality – especially in the built environment!”

We are profoundly grateful to have been part of Monika’s journey. Her dedication as an outstanding consumer representative and her unwavering commitment to ANEC’s mission will always be remembered. Her legacy lives on in access to the built environment standardisation.

On behalf of all in ANEC, we extend our deepest condolences to Monika’s family, friends, and colleagues.

 (photo credit: Wohnungswirtschaft heute)

For comments or if you wish to write an article for the ANEC Newsletter, please contact: Cezara Popovici (cpo(at)anec.eu).