OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 test criteria: New regulations in 2015

At the start of the year, the OEKO-TEX® Association has, as usual, updated the applicable test criteria and limit values for product certification in accordance with OEKO-TEX® Standard 100. After a three-month transition period, the following new regulations come into force on 01 April 2015 for all certifications：

1.The limit value for the sum of nonylphenol (NP), octylphenol (OP), nonylphenol ethoxylates (NP(EO)1-20) and octylphenol ethoxylates (OP(EO)1-20) will be significantly reduced in all OEKO-TEX® product classes:

Product Class	I	II	III	IV
Surfactant, wetting agent residues [mg/kg]
OP, NP, OP(EO)1-20, NP(EO)1-20 Sum	100	100	100	100

2.The specifications for perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) will become much more stringent. In the future, the following limit value must not be exceeded for all product classes (PC):

Product Class	I	II	III	IV
Surfactant, wetting agent residues [µg/m²]
PFOA	< 1.0	< 1.0	< 1.0	< 1.0
PFOS	< 1.0	< 1.0	< 1.0	< 1.0

With these two provisions, OEKO-TEX® specifically supports the "Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC)" initiative and the Detox campaign of international brands and retailers that have committed themselves to exclude hazardous chemicals from the production process by 2020.

3.In the future, there will be differences in the check for chromium(VI) in leather and in other materials. For leather materials, EN ISO 17075, which considers special matrix effects for the testing of leather, will be taken account of as well as the new European (EU) legal regulation no. 301/2014 and regulation (EC) no. 1907/2006 (REACh), respectively. The quantification limit for chromium(VI) is defined as 3.0 mg/kg. The requirement for leather materials with regard to chromium(VI) is therefore < 3.0 mg/kg (= below the limit of detection) in every product class of the OEKO-TEX® Standard 100.For other materials, the previous requirement of < 0.5 mg/kg (= not used; quantification limit 0.5 mg/kg) continues to apply.

4.As is already the case in product classes I to III, only flame-retardant products that have up to now and by current technological standards been deemed harmless to health and that are included in the list of products accepted by OEKO-TEX® can be used in product class IV (decoration materials) in the future. In this case, flame-retardant products may also be permitted for use only in product class IV.

For more clarity, the various flame-retardant products that are definitively prohibited are no longer listed in the limit value table (Annex 4). All expressly prohibited flame-retardant products will be listed in Annex 5 in the future. In addition to the substances that are already listed, the chemicals listed below are now included in Annex 5 of the OEKO-TEX® Standard 100. Use of these chemicals is also completely prohibited with immediate effect.

Substance:	CAS no.:	Substance:	CAS no.:
Boric acid	10043-35-3; 11113-50-1	Tetrabromodiphenyl ether	Various
Diboron trioxide	1303-86-2	Hexabromodiphenyl ether	Various
Tetraboron disodium heptaoxide, hydrate	12267-73-1	Heptabromodiphenyl ether	Various
Disodium tetraborate, anhydrous	1303-96-4; 1330-43-4; 12179-04-3	Tris(1,3-dichloroisopro-pyl)phosphate (TDCPP)	13674-87-8
Trixylyl phosphate	25155-23-1

These measures will ensure that the OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 covers substances from the SVHC candidate list as well as legal requirements, for instance in various US states or in Canada.

5.The limit value for the total content of cadmium after total digestion of the test sample will be reduced to 40 mg/kg as standard in all product classes (previously, PC I: 50 mg/kg; PC II to IV: 100 mg/kg).

Product Class	I	II	III	IV
Heavy metals in digested sample [mg/kg]
Cd	40	40	40	40

6.Formamide will be added to the standard as a new test substance for compact foams and foamed plastics such as EVA, PVC, etc. under the heading "Solvent Residues". The limit value will be 0.02 % (= 200 mg/kg) in all product classes. This ensures that due consideration is given on the one hand to the fact that formamide is included in the ECHA-SVHC candidate list (substances of very high concern) and on the other that there are legal provisions for specific materials/items in France.

Product Class	I	II	III	IV
Solvent residues [w-%]
Formamide	0.02	0.02	0.02	0.02

7.The footnote for arylamines under the heading "Other Chemical Residues" has been changed to:
"For all materials containing polyurethane or other materials that may contain free carcinogenic arylamines". This provides further clarification that materials that contain the free carcinogenic arylamines listed in Annex 5 cannot be certified.

8.Dihexyl phthalate, branched and linear (CAS no. 68515-50-4) and diisohexyl phthalate (CAS no. 71850-09-4) will also be included in phthalates/softeners in all four product classes. This ensures that due consideration is given to the fact that dihexyl phthalate, branched and linear (CAS no. 68515-50-4) is an SVHC candidate substance.

Product Class	I	II	III	IV
Phthalates [w-%]
DHxP，DIHxP	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1

9.C.I. Pigment red 104 (lead chromate molybdate sulphate red) and C.I. Pigment yellow 34 (lead sulfochromate yellow) will be added to the list of colourants classed as carcinogenic and that are therefore prohibited in Annex 5 of the OEKO-TEX® Standard 100.

Substance:	CAS no.:
Pigment Red 104	12656-85-8
Pigment yellow 34	1344-37-2

2015 OEKO-TEX® Standard 100

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