The shop at the corner sells banned goods
To raise awareness of the chemicals legislation, the Swedish Chemicals Agency, together with municipalities in Sweden, inspected small, local ‘corner shops’ and ‘trinket shops’. Of 607 goods inspected, banned substances were found in 91 of them.
‘Many of these smaller companies do not have clear procedures to ensure that what they sell complies with the chemicals legislation. At the same time, they are responsible for ensuring that what they sell is safe,’ says Johan Östergren Hemmander, inspector at the Swedish Chemicals Agency.
Hazardous substances found in the products examined were mainly lead in electrical products, cadmium in jewellery and short-chain chlorinated paraffins and phthalates in soft plastic materials. Substances were present at levels that prohibit the sale of the products.
The municipalities selected the articles to be controlled based on the guidance material of the Swedish Chemicals Agency. The focus was on categories of goods where hazardous substances are found often, such as cheap electronics and soft plastic goods. In total, 607 articles purchased in 248 shops around Sweden were inspected. Of the goods purchased from the stores, 15% contained banned substances and 48% were labelled incorrectly.
One of the aims of the project was to raise awareness of the chemicals rules among businesses. The shops removed the banned products after being contacted by the municipalities.
‘We also contacted the suppliers and they stopped selling the prohibited goods. Companies‘ knowledge about the legislation improves when they are in contact with a supervisory authority that makes them aware of the rules,’ says Johan Östergren Hemmander.
Hazardous substances found in the products
- Lead is a highly toxic substance that cannot be used in certain goods. It can damage the nervous system and affect, for example, the ability to learn new things. Foetuses and children are particularly vulnerable.
- Cadmium is toxic to the environment and can cause osteoporosis, kidney disease and cancer.
- Short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) are harmful to aquatic organisms. It is also very persistent, does not degrade in nature and is a suspected carcinogen.
- Phthalates (e.g. DEHP, DIBP, DBP, BBP) are a group of substances. Not all are harmful to human health, but some phthalates might affect the testicles and make it more difficult to have children and some are suspected endocrine disruptors.
- Mercury is one of the most hazardous environmental pollutants and poses a threat to both the environment and human health. It is a volatile metal that can travel long distances through the air. Mercury is not degradable down but accumulates in soil, water and living organisms.