MJSA Recommends CPSC Adopt EN 71-3 Testing Protocol for Cadmium

cadmium testingMJSA has recommended, in a written statement to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), that the globally recognized EN 71-3 testing protocol be adopted as the U.S. standard to screen for cadmium in children’s jewelry.

"Our research shows that the most widely used and accepted test to best protect children from the harmful elements they might ingest by sucking or chewing on metal jewelry is contained in the European standard EN 71-3," said MJSA President and CEO David W. Cochran.

Since January 2010, when the Associated Press found several U.S. retail outlets were selling mainly Chinese-made children’s jewelry with high cadmium levels, the CPSC and state and federal legislators have targeted the toxic metal’s use in jewelry manufacturing. In May, the CPSC issued its third recall of children’s jewelry since the beginning of the year, and has been looking into tightening port inspections and establishing testing standards and protocols to screen for cadmium content. (Currently no U.S. federal standards for cadmium exist.) In addition, both the U.S. House and Senate have proposed legislation that would regulate sales, as have several states.

EN 71-3’s testing protocol measures the amount that a heavy metal, such as cadmium, can "migrate" or leach out of a sample of jewelry over a two-hour period, when the sample is immersed in a solution that simulates digestive acid. Because children’s exposure to cadmium usually occurs when they suck, chew, or swallow metal jewelry, EN 71-3 comes closest to replicating these conditions. The standard dictates that no more than 75 ppm of cadmium is allowed to migrate from a sample of jewelry in order to pass the test. Walmart has already adopted EN 71-3 protocols to screen for cadmium in children’s jewelry that the store sells, it announced recently.

MJSA stressed in its written recommendations to the CPSC that in a global industry, conformance by all countries with one standard simplifies and streamlines compliance, reducing costs.

In the U.S., the same migration test and cadmium limits established by EN 71-3 are included in a standard developed for children’s toys by the American Society for Testing and Materials, ASTM F 963. Several states with bills restricting cadmium in children’s jewelry have referenced the ASTM test and its limit of 75 ppm of cadmium. Illinois, for example, has just passed The Cadmium-Safe Kids Act, which calls for testing to the ASTM standard and limits.

MJSA continues to monitor the progress of federal and state legislation that would limit the use of cadmium, and in addition to petitioning the CPSC it has also urged state lawmakers to adopt the EN 71-3 standard. It will send updates to its members regarding pending legislative votes, as well as information on testing labs that can screen for cadmium. For more information, go to the Guide to Cadmium Legislation in the MJSA Public Affairs section.

For a list of MJSA member labs that can test for cadmium, click here.