California's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) on May 2, 2019 posted a definition of “nickel (soluble compounds)” to clarify the scope of the agency’s listing last October of these compounds as chemicals known to the state to cause reproductive toxicity for purposes of Proposition 65.

Under the newly issued definition, nickel (soluble compounds) means “compounds of nickel with solubility in water of greater than 0.1 moles per liter (mol/L) at 20 degrees Celsius.”

As with other Proposition 65 listed chemicals, a warning will generally be required on products sold in California that present an exposure to nickel (soluble compounds), unless OEHHA establishes a ”safe harbor” limit (none has been set to date for these compounds), or the business causing the exposure can show there would be no observable effect of reproductive toxicity, even at exposures 1,000 times the level present.

Required Prop 65 warnings for nickel (soluble compounds) must be provided on products sold in California by October 26, 2019.

AHPA is in communication with Proposition 65 counsel and several other trade associations to better understand the possible implications of the listing of nickel (soluble compounds) on Prop 65’s list of chemicals known to cause reproductive toxicity for specific products sold in California, and will provide additional input as this becomes available.

For more information on Prop 65, download AHPA’s free Guidance on California Proposition 65 and Herbal Products (member login required), and see AHPA’s consumer-facing FAQ, Proposition 65 and the Food We Eat.

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