Implementation dialogue on the chemicals industry package with Commissioner Jessika Roswall

On 25 March 2025, Executive Vice-President Séjourné and Commissioner Roswall held a high-level strategic dialogue on the Chemicals Industry Package. This event served the purpose of an implementation dialogue as it related to current implementation issues and ways to achieve impactful simplification. The event gathered representatives from companies, trade associations, trade unions and civil society organisations (see the list below).

The dialogue aimed to gather stakeholders’ feedback on 3 key aspects for the sector

1) how to enhance the level playing field and competitiveness of the EU chemicals industry while ensuring benefits for citizens and the environment

2) priority measures to simplify the REACH Regulation

3) how to protect health and the environment from PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), while ensuring other EU objectives.

Outcome

All stakeholders agreed on the need to keep chemical production in the EU to secure autonomy of key supply chains, safe jobs and sustainable production of safe chemicals. There was also consensus on the need to step up enforcement and compliance with chemicals legislation to ensure a level playing field for companies and better health and environmental protection.

Concerning the REACH revision, diverging views were presented on introducing registration requirements for polymers, a mixture allocation factor and extending the use of the generic risk management approach. There was, nonetheless, broad consensus on strengthening enforcement, improving predictability, fully digitalising processes and supporting innovation in safe and sustainable solutions.

Civil society organisations called for a broad ban of all PFAS with only strict derogations. Representatives from trade unions highlighted that PFAS should be substituted wherever possible, but exceptional continued use under controlled conditions should be ensured where PFAS are still needed. Industry representatives also stressed that PFAS cannot be substituted in all applications.

Executive Vice-President Séjourné concluded that the objective is to ensure continued chemical production in the EU, simplify where possible without deregulating, and offer more flexibility. Commissioner Roswall highlighted the complementarity of the competitiveness and protection objectives.

Further discussions took place on 12 May 2025 during the Strategic Dialogue on the Future of the Chemical Industry in Europe hosted by President von der Leyen. Both dialogues contributed to the Chemicals Industry Action Plan, published on 8 July 2025.

Participants

• Syensqo
• Badische Anilin- und Sodafabrik (BASF)
• SolvaChem
• INEOS
• AkzoNobel
• Arkema
• Kemira
• Safran
• Merck Group
• Kiilto Oy
• Solvay
• Orlen
• Cosmoway
• Cefic (the European Chemical Industry Council)
• Downstream Users of Chemicals Co-ordination Group (DUCC)
• SMEunited
• European Consumer Organisation (BEUC)
• ClientEarth
• Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL)
• ChemSec
• European Environmental Bureau (EEB)
• CHEM Trust
• Eurogroup for Animals
• European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC)
• IndustriAll