BCF takes over management of the paint VOC Globe scheme from B&Q

The legal ownership of the paint VOC globe labelling system has been transferred to the British Coatings Federation from B&Q’s owners, Kingfisher.

The scheme is part of a wider initiative by the coatings industry to raise consumer awareness of the amount of VOC’s (volatile organic compounds) contained in decorative paint products, to allow consumers to make more informed choices.

The BCF, as the trade association for UK’s paint industry, aims to encourage greater involvement from paint manufacturers in the scheme.

It is hoped that the VOC globe symbol, which classifies VOC levels in paint from minimal (0-0.29%) to very high (over 50%), will help consumers make greener choices.

The globe also helps paint recyclers easily separate solvent-based and water-based leftover paint, which aids reuse and recycling.

BCF’s CEO, Tom Bowtell, said of the recent takeover: "The BCF is proud to be proactive on environmental matters, and encouraging the use of lower VOC paint products is important to the coatings industry to help achieve our joint targets with the UK Government to reduce VOCs going into the atmosphere.

"As the paint industry’s trade association, we have the correct forums for paint companies’ technical representatives to review the definitions and standards related to the paint VOC globe system in the future.

"We would like to thank Kingfisher for agreeing to the transfer and we will be sure to encourage participation from more paint manufacturers.”

For more information, or to join up to the scheme, visit https://www.coatings.org.uk/vocglobe.aspx