Study dealing with substance identity in REACH

The REACH review 2013 identified the definition of substance identity and the determination of sameness of substances as one of the challenging aspects to implement the OSOR principle -„one substance = one registration“.

The European Commission contracted a study which aimed at identifying common issues faced by registrants of substances under REACH as well as good practices in the identification of complex substances, especially substances of unknown or variable composition, complex reaction products or biological materials (UVCBs).

 
The study found that over 2 400 substances (nearly a quarter of substances registered by 2013) can be considered complex when it comes to their identity and sameness. The findings confirmed that substance identity remains a complex task for REACH registrants and there is a need to develop sector-specific materials through a collaborative approach to overcome these difficulties. Seven fact sheets have been developed to present the findings for some sectors. 

The European Commission and the European Chemicals Agency will continue to design strategies to clarify and improve the reporting of the identity of substances on the basis of the findings of this study.