The European Union announced the abolition of the carcinogenic label of titanium dioxide, and the export of Chinese products will add new momentum

On December 5, it was learned from the Titanium Dioxide Industry Branch of the China Coatings Industry Association that with the efforts of European coating manufacturers, titanium dioxide (titanium dioxide) was successfully removed
from the classification of carcinogens.

Recently, the Permanent Court of Justice of the European Union announced the abolition of the EU's classification and labeling
of titanium dioxide as a carcinogen in the form of certain powders inhaled.
The Court found that the European Commission had made a manifest error in assessing the reliability and acceptability of the research on which the classification was based and had erroneously applied the EU classification criteria to substances
that did not possess intrinsic carcinogenic properties.
However, the work did not end here, the permanent court of the European Union to cancel the ban, which means that at this stage the EU on the application of titanium dioxide in coatings, food and other industries loosened, but the future may still introduce detailed guidelines
in the field of titanium dioxide inhalation.

According to reports, in June 2016, France publicly published an article on the safety hazards of titanium dioxide; In September of the same year, EFSA opinion stated that E(171) titanium dioxide does not pose a major safety risk when used as a food additive, and most member states supported EFSA's position and requested more data to be published; In 2019, the European Commission listed titanium dioxide as a carcinogen, based on the fact that titanium dioxide with a particle size of less than 1 micron may be inhaled into the body and cause cancer
.
Although the use of titanium dioxide is not prohibited, the use of titanium dioxide requires a warning
to be added to its label.
This regulation caused disputes among coating companies, especially powder coating companies and the Titanium Dioxide Manufacturers Association (TDMA), and filed a complaint
with the Court of Justice of the European Union.

Between 2019 and 2021, the European Commission amended Article (EC) No 1223/2009 several times, gradually tightening the restrictions on the concentration and conditions of titanium dioxide; In February 2022, the European Parliament and the Council amended Annexes II and III of Regulation (EC) No.
1333/2008 on the food additive titanium dioxide (E171), which was completely banned
in the EU after a six-month transition period.
During this period, the British Board of Toxicology issued an opinion on E(171); The U.
S.
Food Chemistry Re-Evaluation Act of 2021 requires a re-evaluation of the safety of ten additives (including titanium dioxide), including titanium
dioxide.

It is understood that the China Coatings Industry Association attaches great importance to the above problems, and guides the Titanium Dioxide Branch of the China Coatings Industry Association to establish a project team, focuses on investigating key titanium dioxide enterprises and toxicology research institutions at home and abroad, and sorts out the domestic product types, production processes, toxicity data on titanium dioxide and titanium dioxide products to form a systematic report, and sends a letter IPPIC (World Coatings Council, now WCC) and discussed
in several international conferences.
And together with the Department of Chemicals of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, a special research meeting was held to discuss the European Commission (EC) No 1223/2009 clause, synthesize data and information, and put forward policy recommendations: titanium dioxide is a stable chemical substance, there is no reliable evidence to prove that it is carcinogenic, as for the conclusion that the French mouse feeding causes lung cancer, mainly due to the large-dose dust inhalation of titanium dioxide, there is an essential difference from the carcinogenicity of the substance itself
。 Therefore, China has not made a ban on titanium dioxide
.

In addition, the China Coatings Industry Association reacted to materials and recommendations through multiple channels such as the World Coatings Council and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, which further affected the EU's determination
of this issue.

In fact, titanium dioxide itself is not carcinogenic, only in some specific environments, with a specific aggregation form, a specific shape, a specific particle size and a specific amount of titanium dioxide is absorbed, there will be a risk of carcinogenesis
.
Therefore, the Court of Justice of the European Union believes that the previous statement that titanium dioxide causes cancer does not have much basis
.

The removal of titanium dioxide (titanium dioxide) from carcinogens is the most direct result of the coating industry, which is to better implement the common concept of green and sustainable development, and the coating industry has achieved the purpose of safety, and for powder coating companies, product packaging does not have to be affected by the words "suspected carcinogenic"
.

Zhou Lei, secretary-general of the Titanium Dioxide Sub-center of the National Chemical Industry Productivity Promotion Center, believes that the European Union's announcement to abolish titanium dioxide (titanium dioxide) is carcinogenic, allowing us to once again confirm that titanium dioxide is the best white inorganic pigment in the world today, and has non-toxicity, the best opacity, the best whiteness and brightness, and is an inert inorganic compound
used as a white pigment in many industrial fields.

Zhou Lei said that the European Court of Justice (ECJ) declared the corresponding regulation of the European Commission invalid
.
The subsequent export of domestic titanium dioxide should be a positive trend
.

Zhou Lei pointed out that although the EU has lifted the ban on titanium dioxide in the coating and food industries, we still need to do a good job in three aspects in the future
.
First, in the production process of titanium dioxide, attention should be paid to the personal protection work of front-line operators, and standard protection specifications should be formulated to avoid excessive inhalation and cause injury; The second is to improve the degree of production automation of enterprises, especially in the packaging link to use auxiliary machinery as much as possible, and try to avoid manual operation; Third, titanium dioxide enterprises should do a good job in their respective product application directions and formulate relevant standards to meet their own development requirements
.
Through these related work, we continue to improve the production and management capabilities of domestic titanium dioxide enterprises, and at the same time improve product quality through product application evaluation, narrow the gap with foreign titanium dioxide enterprises, and continuously increase export share
.

Gong Jiazhu, an expert of the expert group of the titanium dioxide industry branch of the China Coatings Industry Association, pointed out that the European titanium dioxide carcinogenic logo is to raise the threshold
for exporting European titanium dioxide.
As energy costs rise in Europe, producers in all regions are also experiencing an asymmetric slowdown, and production is forecast to decrease
accordingly in the fourth quarter.
Two of Connors' European plants have implemented production cuts; Teno plans to cut capacity at its five European plants, which account for more than
half of its titanium dioxide production capacity.
After the abolition of the carcinogenic label, China's titanium dioxide exports will add new momentum
.

Gong Jiazhu analyzed that China's existing titanium dioxide exports of 1.
3 million tons, in addition to market growth, almost grabbed the market of titanium dioxide manufacturers in developed countries such as Europe, the United States, and Japan, and it is not an exaggeration to say that the rice bowl is not exaggerated
.
However, it is worth noting that most of China's titanium raw material market is outside, once friction, imports are blocked, titanium ore soars, the cost advantage will be gone, it is related to whether our dual cycle of external circulation can be smooth, I hope it will not appear
.

Yang Xun, an analyst in the titanium industry, believes that titanium dioxide has removed the carcinogen label, which is conducive to the export of Chinese titanium dioxide to EU countries
.
Without this restriction, there are many fewer restrictions in the communication and negotiation process of EU countries, which is very beneficial for Chinese titanium dioxide to arrive in EU countries, and it is believed that Chinese titanium dioxide can seize a lot of market share with its previous cost-effective advantages; On the other hand, it is conducive to the use of Chinese cost-effective titanium dioxide
in EU countries.
For a long time, many countries in the EU have been using Chinese titanium dioxide, and now it is clarified that there is no "cancer" of Chinese titanium dioxide, and the actual EU country users are greater beneficiaries, and they can use China's cost-effective titanium dioxide
.

Yang Xun reminded that after this incident, titanium dioxide manufacturers should strengthen their control
over product quality.
At the same time, the quality is done well, and it also has a great role in promoting the quality improvement of titanium dioxide in China
.