Toys are defined as products designed or intended exclusively for use by children under the age of 14.
Exceptions: decorative items for festive events, collector's products, detailed and faithful dummies, folk art dolls, imitations of real firearms, sports equipment, bicycles with a maximum saddle height of more than 4, pistols using compressed air, fireworks, toys using projectiles, electronic equipment such as personal computers, pacifiers for babies.
The release of the games requires the writing of a folder that contains
-
Safety assessment
-
Conformity assessment
-
Declaration of conformity
-
Ensure identification
-
Emphasis on dealing with chemical hazards
Some of the hazardous substances found in toys are solvents, monomers, plasticizers, combustion retardants, preservatives, biocides, and other substances, including those resulting from the production process.
Some of them are (detailed with the relevant limits are mentioned in EN 71-9):
-
Monomers (migration): acrylamide, bisphenol A, formaldehyde, phenol, styrene
-
Solvents: xylene, dichloromethane, methanol, nitrobenzene, toluene, n-hexane etc.
-
Primary aromatic amines: benzidine, aniline, o-toluidine etc.
-
Pigments
-
-
Wood preservatives: Pentachlorophenol and its salts, lindane, cyfluthrin, cypermethrin etc.
-
Preservatives:: phenol, formaldehyde, κ.ά.
-
Plasticizers
The above substances are found in a variety of toys: Soft PVC toys are likely to contain phthalates. Wooden toys and watercolors (eg finger paints) may contain preservatives and biocides, fabrics may be dyed azo dyes (skin sensitizers), and balloons may contain nitrosamines.
Also, the toys regarding metal migration are controlled, namely Sb, As, Ba, Cd, Cr, Pb, Hg, Se (EN 71-3).
Special emphasis is now given to the labeling of toys. The details of the manufacturer or authorized representative, the CE marking and the toy prohibition pictogram for children under 3 months of age are some of the requirements for the toy label.
Picture prohibition pictogram for children under 3 years old and “CE” markingCE”
Consult HELLASCHEMfor: