Titanium-containing Substances Assessment

Summary#

The Department of the Environment and the Department of Health published a summary assessment of 13 titanium-containing substances on June 20, 2026. They concluded these substances are unlikely to harm the environment or the general health of people in Canada at current exposure levels and have proposed taking no further action now.

What it does#

• Publishes the assessment of the Titanium-containing Substances Group (a list of 13 specific titanium-containing chemicals).
• Says the substances do not meet the test for being harmful under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 and therefore the ministers propose no further regulatory action at this time.
• Reviews where these substances are used and how people are exposed, including in foods, cosmetics, paints and coatings, adhesives, textiles, electronics, toys, and some food additives.
• Uses monitoring and modelling, plus biomonitoring from the Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS) Cycle 2 (2009–2011), to estimate exposure and compare it with health-based benchmarks.
• Uses an ecological risk method (ERC‑I) and monitoring data to assess environmental risks and finds low likelihood of ecological harm.
• Identifies toxicology reference points used in the assessment, including a NOAEL of 623 mg Ti/kg bw/day (1 000 mg TiO2/kg bw/day) and a biomonitoring equivalent (BE) of 65 µg/L. The CHMS whole-blood detection limit of 10 µg/L meant titanium was not detected at or above that level in 99.97% of sampled people.

Who's affected#

• Consumers who use products that contain titanium compounds (for example, some cosmetics, food-packaging materials, paints, cleaners, and toys).
• Workers and businesses in industries that make, import, process or use these substances (for example, metal mining and refining, manufacturing, coatings and textiles).
• Children: the assessment found children between ages 4 and 13 had the highest estimated exposures from food and the environment.
• People living near industrial point sources and some Indigenous communities were specifically considered in the assessment. The report found lower dietary titanium intake in the Indigenous peoples studied from Northern Saskatchewan, but overall conclusions apply to the general population.
• If you want to see the exact chemical names or CAS numbers, the full assessment lists all 13 substances.

Why it matters#

• This is the government’s current scientific view that these titanium-containing substances pose low risk to the environment and to people at current exposure levels. That can reassure consumers and businesses that no new restrictions are planned now.
• The finding depends on available data and specific exposure measures (for example, food is a major source). If new evidence or higher exposures emerge, the government could reassess.
• People concerned about inhalation exposure should note the assessment flagged certain lung effects seen in animals under overload conditions; those findings were judged not to apply to the general population at current exposure levels.
• The full assessment and technical details (including the list of substances and the data used) are available on the Government of Canada chemical substances web pages for anyone who wants to read more.