TiO2 - free, ultra-white pigment
The world's best replacement for Titanium dioxide
Safer, just as white, and reduces CO2 by 65%.
Available for a wide range of applications, including
toys, inks, plastics, food contact, and others.
Food and cosmetics packaging
With TiO2 banned in the EU as a food ingredient (E171) you'll want your food packaging free of titanium dioxide as well.
Minéraux makes various RAUX® grades that are designed for masterbatch applications, suitable for LDPE, LLDPE, HDPE, PP, and ABS just to name a few.
RAUX® is suitable for food contact applications and complies with the relevant EU directions and regulations.
A more sustainable solution
Minéraux produces its products in Europe and is based on minerals sourced in Europe.
RAUX® is a more sustainable alternative to titanium dioxide and might be the answer to your question.
RAUX has a 65% lower CO2-footprint when compared to TiO2*
*(based on an independently compiled LCA for RAUX® and LCI data on TiO2 provided by the TDMA)
What is RAUX®?
RAUX® is a range of innovative white pigments made from minerals in the Netherlands by MINÉRAUX.
RAUX® has successfully been tested in a variety of additional applications, including plastics and toys, where it complies with the EN71-3 requirements.
RAUX® is an inorganic mineral pigment with no hazard classification under CLP, free from substances of (very) high concern (SHC / SVHC), and with no adverse effects found in tests performed (EN71-3)
RAUX® reduces your CO2-footprint by up to 65% when compared to TiO2*
(..) the Panel concluded that titanium dioxide can no longer be considered safe as a food additive. (...) we could not exclude genotoxicity concerns after consumption of titanium dioxide particles. (...) they can accumulate in the body
Prof Maged Younes, Chair of EFSA’s expert Panel on Food Additives and Flavourings (FAF)
Background:
In 2015 the The French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) submitted a proposal to the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) to classify TiO2 as a Category 1B carcinogen by inhalation under Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 (CLP Regulation). In 2017 ECHA concluded that TiO2 in all its forms should be classified as a Category 2 suspected human carcinogen by inhalation. This proposal was endorsed by the European Commission in 2020. As a result, liquid and solid products that contain more than 1% Titanium Dioxide required warning labels. Following legal challenges by the industry, the EU later had to annul the classification. It has been banned as a food and feed additive in the EU since 2022 after the EFSA concluded that genotoxicity and reprotoxicity could not be ruled out.
In 2019 The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) delivered an opinion on possible health effects of titanium dioxide, which highlighted the importance of examining immunotoxicological effects in addition to potential reprotoxicological effects.
France banned the substance as a food additive in 2020 and in May 2021 the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) published an article "Titanium dioxide: E171 no longer considered safe when used as a food additive".
The Toy Safety Directive 2009/48/EC1 prohibits the use of substances in toys if those substances are classified as carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic for reproduction (CMR).
The toy industry reported that the vast majority of titanium dioxide placed on the market is in powder form and contains 1% or more particles with an aerodynamic diameter of ≤ 10 μm. The toy industry further signaled a wide use of titanium dioxide in toys and toy materials, including coatings, chalks and powder paints, clays and putties, and polymeric materials.