Declare 2.1 Chemical Hazard Assessment Coverage Documentation Guidance

Last updated: September 25, 2026

Chemical Hazard Assessment (CHA) Coverage recognizes manufacturers that have gone beyond ingredient disclosure and hazard screening by conducting recognized chemical hazard assessments on product ingredients.

A CHA evaluates a chemical across a broad range of human health, environmental, and physical hazard endpoints using a defined methodology. CHA Coverage indicates the percentage by weight of a product's ingredients that have undergone a recognized CHA. It is a measure of the extent of assessment, not a measure of product safety or hazard level.

CHA Coverage is an optional field. It is displayed on the Declare database website but does not appear on the Declare label.

When can I report CHA Coverage?

You may report CHA Coverage when one or more ingredients or materials in your product have been assessed using a recognized CHA methodology.

Coverage is based on the percentage by weight of the product's ingredients that are covered by recognized CHAs. Coverage may be limited when recognized CHAs are not available for certain ingredients.

What evidence is required?

Manufacturers must provide documentation sufficient to establish either:

• Which ingredients or materials were assessed, or
• What percentage by weight of the ingredients or materials in the declared product(s) were assessed.

The documentation should identify the assessed ingredients or materials as specifically as possible when ingredient-level information is available, such as by:

• CASRN
• Chemical or material name
• Alloy designation
• Material or formulation name
• Other unique identifier that allows the assessed material to be matched to the product BOM

However, ingredient-level disclosure is not required in all cases. Recognized third-party material health programs or assessment providers may report assessment coverage at the product or material level without disclosing the individual ingredients. Documentation from these programs may be accepted when it clearly establishes the percentage of the declared product or material that has been assessed.

Examples of acceptable documentation

Depending on the assessment, acceptable documentation may include:

• A CHA report identifying the assessed ingredients or materials
• An assessor-provided ingredient list or assessment summary
• A certificate or other documentation from a recognized material health program that reports the percentage by weight assessed
• A letter on the assessment provider's letterhead identifying the ingredients or materials assessed and the assessment methodology
• A letter or statement confirming the percentage by weight assessed and identifying the applicable product(s)
• Other equivalent documentation that allows Living Future to establish the scope or percentage of the assessment

For example, a Cradle to Cradle Certified® Material Health Certificate may be accepted when it establishes the percentage by weight of the product assessed, even when the certificate does not disclose the individual ingredients.

A copy of the complete CHA is not required when the underlying assessment is proprietary or otherwise not available for submission, provided the submitted documentation contains sufficient information to establish the assessment coverage.

How is CHA Coverage calculated?

The Living Future team reviews the submitted documentation and determines the percentage of product ingredients covered by recognized CHAs.

When documentation identifies the assessed ingredients or materials, Living Future calculates coverage based on their weight relative to the total product weight.

When recognized third-party documentation already establishes the percentage by weight assessed for the declared product or material, Living Future may use that reported percentage to establish CHA Coverage.

For example:

• A product's BOM identifies ingredients representing 80% of the product by weight as having undergone recognized CHAs. The product has 80% CHA Coverage.
• A recognized material health certificate establishes that 80% of a declared product's ingredients by weight have been assessed using an accepted methodology. The product may be recognized at 80% CHA Coverage without disclosure of the individual assessed ingredients.

Recognition Levels

Products may be recognized at one of three levels based on CHA Coverage:

Coverage must meet the minimum threshold for the applicable recognition level.

Recognized CHA methodologies

Living Future's CHA requirements align with the GreenScreen Method.

Accepted CHA methodologies include:

• GreenScreen Hazard Assessment
• GreenScreen List Translator
• ChemFORWARD
• Scivera
• Cradle to Cradle Certified® Material Health Assessment Methodology
• Living Product Challenge Transparent Material Health Assessment methodology

Other methodologies may be considered where they demonstrate sufficient alignment with the GreenScreen approach and evaluate a comparable range of hazard endpoints.

What hazards are evaluated?

Recognized CHAs evaluate chemicals across a broad range of human health, environmental, and physical hazard endpoints. These may include:

• Persistence
• Bioaccumulation
• Acute aquatic toxicity
• Chronic aquatic toxicity
• Carcinogenicity
• Mutagenicity/genotoxicity
• Reproductive toxicity
• Developmental toxicity
• Endocrine activity
• Acute mammalian toxicity
• Systemic toxicity and organ effects
• Neurotoxicity
• Sensitization
• Respiratory sensitization
• Skin irritation/corrosivity
• Eye irritation/corrosivity
• Reactivity
• Flammability
• Ozone depletion potential
• Global warming potential

The presence of CHA Coverage does not indicate that a product is safe, non-toxic, or free of hazardous chemicals. It indicates only the proportion of product ingredients that have undergone a recognized assessment.

Confidentiality

Documentation submitted to Living Future is used to verify assessment coverage. Assessment results and other proprietary assessment information will not be publicly disclosed.

Only the resulting CHA Coverage percentage and applicable recognition level are displayed on the Declare database website.

What do I submit?

When selecting this optional field, upload documentation demonstrating either:

1. Which ingredients or materials are covered by recognized CHAs, or
2. The percentage by weight of ingredients or materials in the declared product(s) that have been assessed.

If the assessment is proprietary, you do not need to submit the complete assessment. An assessor-provided letter, certificate, assessment summary, or other documentation may be sufficient if it provides enough information for Living Future to establish the scope or percentage of assessment coverage.

The Living Future team will review the documentation and determine the product's CHA Coverage percentage and recognition level.

Getting Help

If you have any questions or require additional support please contact declare.support@living-future.org. Declare also hosts regular office hours; sign up here.