[dropcap]2[/dropcap]013 could have been a worrying year for the UK firework industry.
On November 6th 2012 the government decided to bring forward and enforce that all suppliers of fireworks must have all their product manufactured to the new CE standard. The original date planned for the change of regulations was set to be 2017. By pushing the date forward you can appreciate the concern of the UK firework suppliers as to the situation of their existing stock.
However even moving the date completely forward to 2013 would cause major problems in getting newly imported products to comply with the new regulations, particularly as there was still uncertainty as to what these new regulations required. Many importers therefore delayed announcing their 2013 ranges awaiting clarifaication.
Now the government has decided, after long consideration with arguments for and against, that suppliers have until the end of 2014 to ensure that products are manufactured to the new CE standard.
Rest assured that we at Jordans Fireworks are already ensuring that our suppliers are able to test to the new regulations. For the UK firework industry as a whole there may be a reduction in the number of products available due to the amount that will have to be tested, however the end result may be better than some are predicting and we for one would not be surprised to see product ranges continue as they already are.