Bridging the chemical information gap: 3 expert tips
Enhesa Sustainable Chemistry experts share advice on closing gaps in chemical knowledge.
In today’s regulatory and consumer landscape, chemical transparency is a necessity, with businesses under increasing pressure to disclose the ingredients they use and know exactly what’s in their products and processes.
This chemical knowledge is also the foundation for making safer and more sustainable choices. Without it, businesses are unable to identify hazards, source greener alternatives, or protect workers, customers and the environment from potentially harmful substances.
Our survey of over 300 chemicals management professionals highlights a significant chemical knowledge and information gap, however. What exactly is the gap, where does it come from, and how can companies bridge it?
This article explores these questions and offers three top tips from Enhesa Sustainable Chemistry experts.
Understanding the chemical information gap
The chemical information gap refers to the lack of specific and adequate information about chemicals. This gap puts businesses at risk of non-compliance, as they cannot perform necessary assessments to address chemicals management issues.
Key pain points
A limited understanding of what’s needed for chemical assessments is a pain point for 44% of survey respondents (and a strong pain point for a further one-in-seven), contributing to the chemical knowledge gap.
In addition, 43% of chemicals management professionals emphasized the challenge of sharing information with internal stakeholders, making ineffective communication within the business more likely.
External communication is also a challenge, with supply chain transparency highlighted as a growing point too. Chemicals management professionals are struggling to obtain the full ingredient list of the chemicals used in their supply chains, hindering their ability to conduct accurate assessments. In our survey, 71% said suppliers don’t consistently respond to requests for data, and 64% reported that key information is often missing even when they do respond.
Resource constraints add to the challenge. Half of respondents (50%) have limited staff to deal with their supplier network, making it hard to spend the time engaging with suppliers and building positive relationships. Some (6%) are also unsure what information to request from suppliers in order to receive the data they need.
The impact of the chemical information gap
Inadequate knowledge prevents businesses from being able to:
- Compare suppliers — only 23% say they can effectively do so
- Find safer alternatives — just 33% have enough information to research safer and greener chemicals to replace problematic substances
- Choose safer chemicals and products — only 38% can make informed sourcing decisions with the data they have
- Understand hazard profile — 60% struggle to confidently understand the hazard profile of their chemicals across the full formulations of their products
The chemical information gap presents a serious barrier for companies aiming to adapt their processes to be more sustainable and meet regulatory requirements.
Sustainable chemistry practices can help companies combat these challenges. Experts from Enhesa Sustainable Chemistry share their top tips.
Tip #1 — Conduct proactive Chemical Hazard Assessments (CHAs)
Many companies are still reactive, addressing issues as they come up rather than pivoting to a proactive approach. Sustainable chemistry involves not just reacting to existing regulations but actively assessing chemicals for their potential hazards. This means examining all chemicals, including those not currently restricted, to anticipate future regulatory trends and risks.
Understanding the environmental and health implications of chemicals is crucial for identifying potential hazards early, allowing companies to take preventive steps. With regulatory changes, such as those proposed in the EU Green Deal and updates to the CLP, shifting towards a hazard-based approach, this proactive stance is increasingly important.
Chemical Hazard Assessments are becoming more complex. The question for businesses is whether their current approach is enough to keep up with new science and new endpoints companies now have to look at. A tool such as Enhesa Sustainable Chemistry’s Chemical Assess, which screens over 300,000 substances to rapidly identify human health or environmental hazards, allows businesses to access and conduct verified assessments, and make informed decisions on replacements.
Tip #2 — Streamline chemical data management
Regulations like global PFAS reporting requirements and the CSDDD are all pushing for greater supply chain transparency, putting businesses under growing pressure to disclose detailed information about the chemicals they use.
The challenge is that companies often don’t know what information to request, and suppliers are reluctant to share details due to confidentiality concerns. Plus, data is often incomplete and comes in different formats.
Building stronger, more cooperative relationships with suppliers is therefore essential. A tool like Supply Chain Connect helps. Businesses can identify potential chemical hazards within their supply chain, collect necessary data in an accessible and standardized format, and protect suppliers’ proprietary information.
By simplifying and streamlining the process of chemical data management and collection, businesses can bridge the chemical information gap.
Tip #3 — Enhance cross-functional understanding
One of the greatest challenges companies face around knowledge and chemical information is the range of different departments involved in chemicals management, each with their own concern:
- EHS teams focus on environmental emissions and protection of workers from chemical exposure
- Regulatory affairs or legal teams track regulations as they evolve
- Product design and R&D teams concentrate on the viability of obtaining chemicals for business use
- Internal toxicologists focus on identifying the hazards behind the chosen chemicals
With so many teams working on chemicals issues and storing data in various places, it’s no wonder gaps appear.
The solution is to bring these various pieces of chemical data into one system accessible across the organization.
Bridge the chemicals management gap with sustainable chemistry
Discover which gaps in chemicals management put companies at risk of failure, and how green chemistry can help. Download our full survey report for insights into the challenges companies like yours face, and get further insights and tips from industry experts to help your business make confident, safer, and more sustainable choices.