Cleaner World and Safer Future With New European Flame Retardants Regulations

FRX Innovations (TSXV:FRXI) (FSE:W2A.F) (OTC QB: FRXIF) (“FRX” or the “Company”), a leader in eco-friendly flame retardant solutions, announces that its Nofia® product line will benefit from the decision by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) on January 17, 2023, to name three common flame retardants as Substances of Very High Concern (SVHC).

This designation brings stringent disclosure and notification requirements. Specifically, if a product contains more than 0.1% of a newly classified SVHC Chemical, customers must be notified within six months of such classification. Being listed as an SVHC Chemical usually catalyzes the industry to quickly remove it from articles, even in advance of a process called Authorization, which is the complete banning of such chemical in uses other than those specifically authorized by the regulator.

One of the three SVHC chemicals is TBBPA, which is the most-used brominated flame retardant. “This will lead to a rapid phase-out of its use in additional applications not already covered by the EU and U.S. banning brominated flame retardants in electronic display devices such as TVs and monitors.

The additional applications include textile coatings and many uses of the popular plastic ABS, such as in consumer electronics through to larger medical equipment such as MRI machines,” said Marc Lebel, CEO of FRX Innovations, “In many cases, our Nofia® flame retardants are the ideal alternative solution.”

Melamine has also been designated an SVHC. “Commonly used as a flame retardant in a range of products, most notably polyurethane foam for mattresses and furniture ” noted Lebel. “Formulations containing melamine can be replaced by Nofia. These are exciting times with many new opportunities arising for FRX. We’re working with over 20 different companies now to replace harmful legacy flame retardants with new, greener alternatives. We expect our first sales into foam mattresses by this summer.”