On March 25, 2015 the organization Eurogroup for Animals (EfA) reported about a stakeholder roundtable meeting on endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) hosted in Brussels, Belgium by the European Commission (EC). The meeting was the first of a series of meetings planned by the EC on this topic (FPF reported). EfA highlights that the participants in the meeting included industry sector representatives, and health, consumer, environment and animal welfare NGOs. During the meeting, the EC gave an update on responses received to the recent public consultation on defining criteria for identifying EDCs (FPF reported). The EC stated that an analysis of the consultation still needs to be carried out. In addition to the public consultation, two studies will be conducted. The first study will closely look at 700 chemicals to predict whether they could be considered as EDCs. The study will be based on already existing data and no additional tests will be performed. EfA notes that there was an intense discussion with the stakeholders at the meeting. Most questions focused on transparency, understanding why specific chemicals were selected and clarity of the planned chemical screening process. The EC did not provide any timeline. Therefore, it remains unknown when the criteria to determine EDCs will finally be set.
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EfA (March 25, 2015). “Commission stakeholder round table on setting criteria to determine endocrine disrupting chemicals.”
EC (April 20, 2015). “Summary report of round table on the impact assessment on criteria to identify endocrine disruptors.” (pdf)
