trade-e-bility News Archive

05/15/2020

German Packaging Act: Theme papers for (online) retailers and micro distributors

The German Foundation Central Agency Packaging Register (ZSVR) has published various very helpful theme papers on its website. Differentiated according to industry sectors – especially for retail companies, mail order companies, online retailers and micro distributors.

05/05/2020

Dangerous masks due to hasty market roll-out

The current crisis situation has resulted in huge demand for respiratory masks. Yet the task of importing such masks involves a complicated procedure. As a result, some products have entered the European market that do not deliver what they promise, as can be seen in the latest reports on the RAPEX list. RAPEX stands for the European rapid alert system providing for dangerous and non-marketable products to be listed – often resulting in the relevant products having to be recalled. In order to ensure that imports proceed smoothly, a few important points need to be considered, which we have compiled for you here.

05/05/2020

German WEEE legislation (ElektroG): Please check your registered categories - take your chance to use the period of crisis to revise and update your WEEE-compliance matters

Check your assortment of registered products concerning some possible gaps in compliance. take-e-way will be delighted to assist you. For example: According to German ElektroG legislation, electric products are classified as six different categories. For consumer products (products for private use), it happens quite often and unintentionally, that electronic products are not classified correctly according to the electro-legislation. After the crisis, the competent authorities are likely to impose fines and audits. Currently the Federal Environmental Agency in Germany is hiring additional enforcement officers in the sections of WEEE (ElektroG), Batteries Act and Packaging Act. Moreover, please note that in the field of competition law, competitors and associations specialized in warning letters are taking any chance to detect gaps in compliance.

05/05/2020

German government presents draft ordinance banning certain disposable plastic products

Due to the increasing use of short-lived plastic products, which are not very resource-efficient and are often improperly disposed of after use, thus contributing significantly to environmental pollution, it is proposed to prohibit plastic products for which suitable alternatives already exist.

04/23/2020

Will even more dealers soon be affected by the e-waste take-back obligation?

A few days ago, in an interview with the waste management association BVSE the Federal Ministry for the Environment (BMU) outlined the planned amendments to the ElektroG3. Are far-reaching changes possibly imminent for the entire retail sector (stationary AND online)? This can certainly be assumed after this interview. We recommend that you take the forthcoming changes seriously and, as a potentially affected party, inform yourself in good time about your obligations.

04/23/2020

Guide to recyclable and sustainable packaging

Since packaging is often an important element of a product, for instances to provide the necessary protection or to comply with hygiene regulations, the search for alternatives when it comes to materials and packaging is not easy for companies. This is why the Bavarian Chambers of Industry and Commerce, in cooperation with the Resource Efficiency Centre of Bavaria (REZ), has developed a guide for companies to give them an initial introduction to the topic. take-e-way endorses the guide from the BIHK and will be pleased to support you with services required for the production of recyclable packaging.

04/23/2020

ElektroG: B2B registration correctly transferred in October 2018?

To be on the safe side, we recommend that you check your B2B registration thoroughly once again. Of course, you are welcome to contact take-e-way in this regard. take-e-way will then check as best we can whether the transferred registration is correct or whether there is a need for action.

04/09/2020

Selling medical respiratory masks without CE marks

While so-called “community masks” without the CE mark can be placed on the market, these are not suitable for use in the clinical sector, for instance. However, for medical respiratory masks which are also marketable in the United States of America, Canada, Australia or Japan, Section 11 (1) of the German Medical Devices Act allows the competent authority to issue special permits and, where necessary or applicable, also to declare such masks without CE marks as marketable in Germany.

04/09/2020

Please observe timely the notification obligation for articles containing SVHC as of 5 January 2021

As of 5 January 2021, notification of articles containing SVHCs is mandatory according to the amendment to EU Directive 2018/851. SVHC stands for “Substances of Very High Concern”. All articles containing more than 0.1% by mass of SVHC substances are subject to compulsory notification. In particular, articles such as CdTe photovoltaic modules are subject to notification due to their product characteristics. Many other electrical and electronic equipment may also be affected, as heavy metal compounds and flame retardants are also included in the SVHC list. Recommendation: Please make timely preparations for such mandatory notification so that you or your suppliers have sufficient lead time until 5 January 2021.

04/09/2020

Observe POP (Persistent Organic Pollutants) limits for flame retardants

On 20 February 2019 the European Parliament agreed on new limit values for brominated diphenyl ethers, which are used as flame retardants. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE), already known through the RoHS Directive, are now newly governed by this resolution, with the limit value being halved, i.e. massively reduced. For decabromdiphenylether (DecaBDE) the RoHS limit value continues to apply to electrical equipment. This affects distributors, importers and manufacturers since the materials of products may only contain a total of 500 mg/kg of BDEs (brominated diphenyl ethers); for decaBDE as a single substance, the limit is 10 mg/kg. Recommendation: The agreement is not yet legally binding. However, please make sure that your suppliers already have products that meet the above requirements.

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