WARNING: California’s Listing of Microplastics as a Candidate Chemical May Result in Unexpected, and Imminent, Compliance Obligations Under AB 1200 (California Safer Food Packaging and Cookware Act)

On June 18, 2026, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) added microplastics to the list of Candidate Chemicals maintained under the state’s Safer Consumer Products (SCP) regulations.  The listing of microplastics, which becomes effective on October 1, 2026, is the first step in the SCP regulatory process, which could lead to restrictions on products that contain or release microplastics. 

As DTSC emphasized throughout the listing process, the addition of microplastics to the Candidate Chemicals list does not automatically create new obligations under the SCP program and further rulemaking will be needed under that program to identify, and ultimately regulate, specific “priority products” under that program.  However, the listing does have immediate consequences under a different program, AB 1200, which will impact manufacturers and brand owners of cookware products that contain or generate microplastics.

For purposes of the Candidate Chemical list, DTSC has defined “microplastics” based on physical form and size, rather than by specific chemical identity, as follows:

• Plastics that are less than 5 millimeters in their longest dimension, including those that are intentionally manufactured at those dimensions (e.g., microbeads, polymer powders, plastic pellets, scrubbers); and
• Plastics in that size range generated because of the fragmentation, degradation, or breakdown of larger plastic items.

As DTSC has explained, this definition is intended to encompass products that contain intentionally added microplastics, such as microbeads and nurdles (so-called “primary” microplastics) as well as plastic articles that release microplastics as a result of degradation (so-called “secondary” microplastics).  DTSC’s inclusion of secondary microplastics vastly expands the universe of products covered by this definition.

Implications for AB 1200 and Cookware

AB 1200, codified at California Health and Safety Code Section 109010 et seq., requires manufacturers and brand owners of cookware products sold in California to provide disclosures on product labels and company websites with respect to any Candidate Chemicals present in those products.  More specifically, the labeling and website disclosure requirements apply to cookware products with a Candidate Chemical in either (i) the handle of the cookware product or (ii) any surface of the product that comes into direct contact with food or beverages.  AB 1200 also restricts certain "free-of" marketing claims.

Importantly, the AB 1200 labeling and website disclosure obligations apply automatically to chemicals that are listed on the Candidate Chemicals list, without the need for further regulation or other agency action.  Consequently, because of the recent addition of microplastics to the Candidate Chemicals (effective October 1, 2026), manufacturers and brand owners may need to comply with the AB 1200 requirements with respect to microplastics contained in or generated by their cookware products as early as this Fall. 

Under AB 1200, cookware products that do not comply with the labeling and website disclosure requirements may not be sold, offered for sale, or distributed in California. Failure to comply with AB 1200 may also expose companies to enforcement under California's Unfair Competition Law, False Advertising Law, and related consumer protection statutes.

Future Regulation Under the SCP Program

DTSC's 2024-2026 Priority Product Work Plan for the SCP program includes a category for "Products that Contain or Generate Microplastics," and DTSC has indicated that it is conducting preliminary research on consumer products in this category—including plastic packaging, synthetic clothing and textiles, cigarette filters, tires, and paints and coatings.

Though DTSC has not yet proposed any priority products containing microplastics for future regulation under the SCP program, the addition of microplastics on the Candidate Chemicals list enables DTSC to proceed from research to rulemaking. If DTSC proceeds to list consumer products containing microplastics as Priority Products, SCP obligations would begin to attach. These include:

• Priority Product Notification (generally within 60 days of the priority product designation’s effective date, required of responsible entities);
• Conducting an Alternatives Analysis evaluating whether safer alternative chemicals or product designs exist; and
• Implementing a Regulatory Response, which DTSC selects based on the alternatives analysis and may range from product reformulation requirements to restrictions on sale or use.

Industry Takeaways

Given the October 1, 2026, effective date, companies—particularly those with AB 1200 compliance programs already in place—should consider taking the following steps:

1. Conduct a microplastics inventory review. Evaluate whether any intentionally added plastic polymer particles at or below the 5 mm size threshold are present in cookware handles or food-contact surfaces. This includes not just intentionally added microplastics but also microplastics that may be generated through degradation of plastic in the product handle or food contact surface(s).
2. Update AB 1200 website disclosures. If microplastics are present in the relevant surfaces/handles of covered cookware, update the required website disclosure language to include microplastics as a chemical on the designated list and add the required links.
3. Audit and update product labels. Review label inventory and change-control workflows to ensure label language can be updated before covered products are sold in California on or after October 1, 2026.
4. Review "free-of" claim language. Audit all packaging, marketing materials, and website language making "microplastic-free" or similar claims. (Companies should be careful, more generally, about claiming that their products are microplastic-free, since California's definition covers secondary microplastics shed through normal use.)

Crowell & Moring has been closely monitoring updates to microplastics rules and legislation on both the federal and state levels, and we will continue to provide updates as this area of law develops.