Highlights from June BPC meeting

ECHA’s Biocidal Products Committee (BPC) adopted a record number of opinions during its June meeting. These concern nine opinions on Union authorisation, five on active substance applications and 10 on requests from the European Commission.

Helsinki, 21 June 2022 – The committee adopted the following positive opinions on Union authorisations:

• active chlorine released from chlorine used in disinfectants and algaecides not intended for direct use on people or animals (product-type 2) and for disinfection of drinking water for both humans and animals (product-type 5);
• calcium dihydroxide/calcium hydroxide/caustic lime/hydrated lime/slaked lime for product type 2, and for use in disinfectants, disinfecting soaps, oral or corporal hygiene products or with anti-microbial function (product-type 3);
• calcium oxide/lime/burnt lime/quicklime for product-types 2 and 3;
• peracetic acid for product-types 2, 3 and for use in disinfecting equipment, containers, consumption utensils, surfaces or pipework associated with the production, transport, storage or consumption of food or feed (including drinking water) for humans and animals (product-type 4);
• hydrogen peroxide for product-types 2 and 4;
• L-(+)-lactic acid for product-types 3 and 4;
• L-(+)-lactic acid for product-types 2, 3 and 4; and
• 3-iodo-2-propynylbutylcarbamate (IPBC) for use in preservation of wood, from and including the saw-mill stage, or wood products by the control of wood-destroying or wood-disfiguring organisms, including insects (product-type 8).

The committee does not support a Union authorisation for hydrogen peroxide for toilet bowl disinfection in professional environments, such as hospitals (product-type 2). The BPC concluded that, among other things, the measures that would need to be taken to prevent or mitigate exposure during use would not be practical nor feasible. It also stated that some co-formulants of the product lead to unacceptable environmental risks.

One Union authorisation opinion concerning chlorocresol was postponed and will be adopted through a written procedure.

The committee supports the approval of the active substance formic acid for product-types 2, 3, 4, 5 and for use in preservatives for products during storage (product-type 6).

The opinions concerning the requests from the European Commission include those on availability and suitability of alternatives to hexaflumuron and on endocrine disrupting properties of formaldehyde releasers. More details about these are available in the annex.

The European Commission together with EU Member States will take the final decision on approval of active substances and on Union authorisation of biocidal products.

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The committee met on 8-9 and 14-16 June 2022. The opinions will be available on the BPC's web page in the near future. The next meeting will take place in September 2022.

Listen to the highlights from the BPC’s meeting in June in our podcast in which committee Chair Erik van de Plassche shares his reflections. More details about the committee’s conclusions are also available in the annex.