CertiPUR-US will expand the list of banned substances, and polyurethane foam containing stannous octoate will not be certified

Effective November 23, 2023, the CertiPUR-US® Foam Certification Program will not certify submitted foams containing stannous octoate (CAS: 301-10-0), a tin catalyst that can be used in the production of Flexible polyurethane fo.

This change was triggered by the recent European Commission's decision to place 2-ethylhexanoic acid (CAS: 149-57-5) and most of its salts, including Stannous octoate, reclassified as reproductive toxicity 1B with hazard statement H360D ("May harm the unborn child.

"Substances classified as 'may cause cancer', 'may cause genetic defects' or 'may impair fertility or the unborn baby' are prohibited in the CertiPUR-US certified foam," said Michael Crowell, executive director of CertiPUR-.

The November 23, 2023 entry into force date is based on the EU's harmonized classification practice to allow industry to reformulate foams with alternative chemicals, a process that often requires significant changes in procurement, operations and producti.

Depending on the certification renewal date for a particular foam, some participating foam producers will face 12 months to complete the transition, while others will have more ti.

The accreditation criteria for the CertiPUR-US program were developed in 2008 under REACH and other chemical regulators, under the direction of chemists, environmental scientists and toxicologists, in collaboration with leaders in the foam, mattress and upholstered furniture industri.

According to Michael Crowel, the technical guidelines detailing certification standards have been updated several times over the organization's histo.

More than 90 flexible polyurethane foam manufacturers from 18 countries currently certify more than 200 different foam formulations through the CertiPUR-US program, administered by the non-profit Flexible Polyurethane Foam Allian.