Michael Harding’s Artist Oil Colours
Lead White Production
Michael Harding would like to inform you about the current issues we, and most other paint manufacturers, are having with regards to lead white paint.
1. The last remaining European manufacturer of Lead Carbonate, this is the pigment used to make lead white paint, has stopped their production. There are no other manufacturers in Europe or the US at the moment.
We are urgently looking for a new supplier and may have found another manufacturer outside of Europe, who can provide the same quality product.
This manufacturer obviously is aware of the current issues in Europe and has substantially risen their prices for this particular pigment. We are negotiating with them at the moment. But realistically, in order to get the product, we will have to accept that paying a higher price is going to be unavoidable.
2. The fact that this new supplier is based outside of Europe means that we are subjected to the new European legislation on Chemicals, called REACH, which makes it almost impossible to import the necessary amounts of pigment into Europe.
We are doing our best to come up with a workable solution, but this takes time. We are working together with other paint manufacturers to solve this problem as this is obviously an issue that affects the whole artist paint industry. So far, nothing conclusive has come up.
We will keep you informed about the status of our efforts via our website www.michaelharding.co.uk.
We are confident that a solution will be found in the next few months. This search has become our no.1 priority.
We thank you for your patience.
Please inform your staff and customers of the reasons behind the temporary unavailability of lead whites.
Yours sincerely,
Michael Harding
For more information on REACH
