The Baccarat factory is preparing a major industrial innovation. The company wants to produce its emblematic lead-free crystal.
Baccarat’s General Manager, Maggie Henriquez, says that this is an “intimate transformation”. The company has been preparing for some months to produce lead-free crystal.
Regularly denounced as a harmful substance by Europe, lead could be banned in the coming years. In 2018, Sweden had already called for its prohibition in the European Union. The issue is still under consideration and is the subject of a public consultation.
Lead is the very essence of crystal, without which it would only be ordinary glass.
A major challenge
A European directive that strictly regulates the use of lead in industry could upset crystal professionals if the derogation they enjoy is not renewed.
Baccarat enjoyed such an exemption, granted for five years. The company therefore decided to take the initiative and design its crystal without the offending metal. While maintaining its image as a luxury crystal maker.
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