Study Finds High Lead Levels in Paints Around the World

New Data Shows Market Leaders in Six Asian Countries Have Shifted to Low Lead Products, Though Overall Lead in Paint Levels Remain High

Berkeley, U.S./Gothenburg, Sweden — Despite bans on lead in household paint in most Western countries, a new study from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) finds that the majority of paints tested in nine, geographically diverse, developing and transition countries would not met regulatory standards established in most highly industrialized countries and, in some cases, contain astonishingly high and dangerous levels of lead. New data from seven Asian countries reveals similar results, but also show that paint companies with the largest market share in those countries have largely shifted to unleaded products in recent years.

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