Driving improvement in chemical inputs for material supply chains through the Eurofins | Chem-MAP® Programme.
What is Eurofins | Chem-MAP®?
Whilst chemicals play an enormous role in our everyday lives, the desire to reduce the exposure to humans and the environment to hazardous and toxic chemistry is ever growing. As a result, the of chemicals in manufacturing processes for consumer products are being increasingly scrutinised and brands and retailers are requiring better chemical inputs to be used upstream to ensure responsible chemical footprints for the products sold.
This is never more relevant than in the footwear and apparel supply chains with programmes such as ZDHC (Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemistry) which has value chain alignment and commitment to widespread implementation of sustainable chemistry and best practice within the textile, leather and footwear industries. Such goals are likely to grow in ambition to reach other complex and chemical intensive supply chains.
Brands and Retailers are increasingly aware of the risks posed by upstream chemical use. This puts additional scrutiny on the chemical companies and their own supply chains.
Who is Eurofins | Chem-MAP® for?
The Chem-MAP® value chain programme was designed in response to the need for verification of chemical inputs and involves programmes aimed at the three main stakeholders within a consumer goods value chain; the chemical manufacturing company, the manufacturer of material (or product) and the brand and/or retailer.
The programme will provide assurance that chemical products are sold (routinely) as compliant (to the ZDHC or other MRSL specification) and that chemical manufacturers have appropriate stewardship in terms of management and control systems in place to assure that chemical products are being manufactured responsibly and to a recognised standard. This process will involve a robust assessment of the chemical manufacturing company through an audit and testing programme and further downstream assurance though audits of facilities and surveillance testing of supplied chemical products.
Other services available through the Eurofins | Chem-MAP® system involve training and capacity building for manufacturing facilities and brands/retailers.
Supporting ZDHC objectives through the Eurofins | Chem-MAP® System
Aimed at supporting the goals of the ZDHC programme and other MRSL initiatives, Chem-MAP® provides a range of third party assessments targeted at the three main supply chain stakeholders, chemical supply company, material manufacturer and brand and retailer.
The Eurofins | Chem-MAP® system will provide assurance to the entire value chain around responsible chemical use and the integration of MRSL compliant chemistries.
Vegan Verification with Eurofins | Chem-MAP
Verify products, materials and chemicals are vegan with the Chem-MAP vegan verification programme. The Chem-MAP team works with manufacturers, brands and retailers to correctly specify vegan materials using a progressive approach.
What is the Vegan Verification programme?
The following services are offered:
- Strategy Support and policy creation.
- Bill of Materials (BOM), Chemical Inventory Log (CIL) Creation and Review.
- Risk Assessment of BOM and CIL and Onsite Audit.
- Animal DNA Analysis.
- Microscopy for Animal Fibres & FTIR Testing for the Presence of Animal Proteins.
- Declarations of Conformity and Referrals to the Vegan Society.
Vegan Society Registered Verification Test
The Vegan Verification Testing programme for the apparel and footwear sector has been registered with The Vegan Society’s Vegan Trademark.
The trademark will be awarded to those companies who successfully meet verification criteria for all vegan product components.
The Chem-Map Vegan testing programme is listed and approved by US-based company BeVeg, as a robust way of verifying products, materials and chemicals as vegan.
BeVeg is an ISO/IEC 17065 accredited certification standard built in accordance with ISO/IEC 17067 as a conformity assessment programme and accredited by the National Accreditation Centre (NAC).
Contact the Eurofins | Chem-MAP® Team
Understand more about how the Eurofins | Chem-MAP programmes can benefit your business through training, audits, verification and certification. Call us to discuss on +44 (0)1604 679 999.
Chemical Management at Eurofins | BLC
The effective management of product safety is a key element to the integrity and sustainability of any successful global brand. The product safety landscape is rapidly changing with global regulations controlling the safety of retailed consumer products increasing significantly in recent years. Additional influencers such as the NGO community, in particular groups such as Greenpeace (where toxic chemistry is a key agenda item) are also driving change. A proactive approach to product safety ensuring that global regulations and NGO expectations are met is key for a brand to avoid exposure and associated consequences such as reputational damage and litigation.
Effective management of restricted chemicals within a value chain containing many tiers of supplier requires significant resource and specialist knowledge around chemistry.
Eurofins | BLC has a specialist team of chemists and regulatory specialists that works with all stakeholders in the supply chain support around chemical management to ensure that suppliers are compliant to their customers restricted substance requirements.
At Eurofins | BLC we can help to ensure that wherever you sit in the supply chain you are confident with managing chemical risk. Specific services include training and education, setting relevant and current chemical content specifications, legislation updates, NGO engagement advice and specific programme support (such as ZDHC) and supplier risk mapping around chemical inputs. We can support with replacement of upstream hazardous chemistry and design testing and due diligence programmes to suit your business and manage risk.