The European Union’s total production and consumption of chemicals, including both hazardous and non-hazardous materials, has fallen significantly over the last decade, according to Eurostat.

Specifically, production has dropped by 15 per cent, while consumption declined by 18 per cent, when compared with 2014.

Despite this decade-long downward trend, both production and consumption saw a small recovery in the last year, recording an increase of 6 per cent and 5 per cent respectively compared with 2023 figures.

In 2024, the EU produced a total of 224 million tonnes of chemicals, while consumption stood at 232 million tonnes.

The production of chemicals classified as hazardous to health reached 172 million tonnes in the EU in 2024, marking a 33 million tonne reduction, or 16 per cent drop, since 2014.

Meanwhile, the production of chemicals hazardous to the environment totalled 66 million tonnes, which is 7.9 million tonnes less than in 2014, representing an 11 per cent decrease.

It is important to note that these two sub-categories of hazardous chemicals overlap.

Usage of chemicals hazardous to health also decreased substantially, reaching 170 million tonnes in 2024, a 22 per cent decline compared with a decade ago.

The consumption of chemicals hazardous to the environment saw an even sharper decline, going down 32 per cent to total 53 million tonnes in 2024.

Overall, the EU’s consumption of hazardous chemicals has fallen substantially, decreasing by 47 million tonnes since 2014.

This decline underscores the bloc’s efforts to mitigate environmental and health risks.

This reduction includes an 18 million tonnes decrease in the consumption of the most harmful substances, which dropped from 48 million tonnes to 30 million tonnes over the same period.

This sustained decline in consumption of the most damaging chemicals reflects ongoing policy efforts to reduce the use of the most toxic substances across the European market.