Another Spray Paint Brand Screened Negative for Toxic Lead
18 May 2025, Quezon City. The toxics watchdog group EcoWaste Coalition today announced its discovery of more spray paint products without lead, a hazardous chemical banned in the manufacture of paints.
With the aid of an X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) analyzer, the group screened 16 samples of Thaiworkz Spray Paint that are sold online for P65 for 277 mL can and P80 for 400 mL can. Among the colors screened for lead were deep green, grass green, leaf green, Honda red, signal red, orange, lemon yellow, and yellow.
Lead above the regulatory limit of 90 parts per million (ppm) was not detected on all 16 samples, indicating the availability of raw materials and the technology to produce paints that will not pose lead exposure hazards.
The group last month also revealed the non-detection of lead on 10 samples of Omega All-Purpose Spray Paint and four samples of Tradesman Spray distributed by March Resources Manufacturing Corp. and Handyman, respectively (the former is a member of the Philippine Paint & Coatings Association, Inc.).
The EcoWaste Coalition commended the non-use of lead by Thaiworkz’s manufacturer as this will prevent workers and consumers from being exposed to lead, a potent neurotoxin that can damage the health of adults and children, including the unborn child.
In time for the World Consumer Rights Day last March 15, the group published an updated list of 168 imported spray paints sold locally, including in online shopping sites, that contain violative levels of lead. Of these 168 paints, 119 had lead levels in excess of 10,000 ppm. Fifty of these paints contained 50,000 ppm to 212,000 ppm of lead, including eight with over 100,000 ppm.
A DENR-issued chemical control order (CCO) has outlawed the use of lead and its compounds as pigments, drying catalysts, or as an anti-corrosive agent in the production of paints to protect vulnerable populations such as children, women, and workers from the harmful effects of lead exposure.
According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), “exposure to lead can cause chronic and debilitating health impacts in all age groups, and children are particularly vulnerable to its neurotoxic effects.”
Children’s exposure to lead early in life can damage the developing brain and nervous system, causing developmental delays, learning difficulties, lower intelligence quotient (IQ), attention deficit disorder and behavioral problems.
“There is no level of exposure to lead that is known to be without harmful effects,” the World Health Organization (WHO) pointed out.
To prevent imported lead-containing paints from entering the domestic market, the EcoWaste Coalition advocates for strengthened customs checks, for improved compliance monitoring, and for stricter global rules to control the trade of lead chromates in paint manufacturing, as well as finished paint products containing them.
“We reiterate our appeal to all paint manufacturers, importers, and retailers to ensure that only lead-safe products are sold in the market as this will protect our people from the well-documented health hazards of lead exposure, especially among children, pregnant women, and the workers,” the EcoWaste Coalition said.
The group likewise urged manufacturers to provide adequate and truthful labeling information to guide consumers in making informed choices, as well as to facilitate the satisfactory handling of consumer queries and complaints, if any.
