A Detailed Guide to Packaging Regulations and Standards

Meeting high-quality standards and abiding by the state law for your product packaging is paramount. If you want your business operations to run smoothly, you should implement best practices that adhere to regulations and industry standards.

Before implementing the ideal practices, you need to know the rules and standards for your product packaging. Here is a detailed guide you must read before producing or customizing your product packaging.

We will also be exploring the benefits of abiding by the rules and meeting industry standards. Read on!

International Packaging Standards

Meeting international packaging standards is paramount for businesses. It helps them comply with the authorities and prevent legal action. International Organization for Standardization (ISO) certifications help you standardize the quality of your packaging in many ways.

Packaging regulations are tight when it comes to foods, medicines, and tobacco products. FDA sets and enforces rules for food and medicine packaging in the USA. On the other hand, the European Union (EU) is focusing more on promoting recyclable packaging materials.

Let’s have an overview of ISO certifications for packaging quality, and FDA and EU regulations for ultimate compliance:

ISO Certifications for Product Packaging

Choosing the right quality packaging is paramount if you want to safeguard your products and create an impact with the first impression. But, how can you standardize the quality of your product packaging without hassle? ISO certifications help you in this regard.

Endless certifications are there that establish the material and features of your packaging according to international standards.  For instance, ISO 9001 certification for quality management systems standardizes your packaging quality according to the expectations of your customers.

ISO 780 is the certification you should look for when it comes to buying shipping boxes. It specifies the usage of the right symbols for marking transport packages for distribution purposes. These symbols convey instructions about handling and are used only when needed.

Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) Amendment 1957

According to the 1957 amendment in FFDCA, businesses are required to follow Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations for food contact substances. Product packaging for food is one of the contact substances that should comply with FDA guidelines.

You can achieve ultimate FDA compliance by understanding and implementing regulatory guidelines in your business. Some of these guidelines are elaborated in some parts of CFR (code of federal regulation) 21. These parts cover regulatory rules for food additives, paper packaging, cardboard boxes, polymers, and more.

However, CFR 21 explains rules about accepted food contact materials. For substances that are not covered in these rules, you need to get a food contact notification (FCN) from the FDA. This notification is the license allowing you to use an uncommon food packaging material.

By following these rules while using paper-based or plastic packaging for food products, you can ensure compliance in food packaging.

EU Rules for Product Packaging

The European Union (EU) ensures environmental compliance assurance by setting rules that promote sustainability. When it comes to packaging waste, the EU is working on setting the rules that promote packaging reusability and recyclability.

These set of rules are expected to alter the production as well as usage of product packaging in the European market. The objective is to minimize the waste of natural resources caused by packaging wastage. This can be done by promoting packaging reusability and recyclability instead of disposal.

This can be done if EU countries ensure the implementation of producer responsibility schemes. Here is the EU’s recycling target for product packaging in forecast years:

Labelling Requirements for Product Packaging

Following the right labeling requirements that comply with the State law in which you’re doing business is important. Informing distributors and consumers about the product through packaging labels can prevent you from various legal problems.

You can either go for ISO certifications for labeling to meet international standards. In European countries, you need to follow EU guidelines on product labeling. Or you can comply with (Fair Packaging Labeling Act) FPLA in the USA.

ISO Rules for Labelling

Providing significant information about products to customers and distributors is paramount if you are dealing with the international market. If you want to sell items across borders, your product packaging must be labeled with product safety guidelines and suitable information about the items for end customers.

To do so, you can follow the internationally accepted standards for packaging labels by getting ISO certifications. Various label certifications are there for your product packaging.

ISO 28219:2017 is the certification that standardizes the labeling and direct product marking with bar codes and symbols. ISO 3864-2:2016 formulates rules for designing the label symbols to ensure product safety. The prime focus is on safety colors and the design of safety designs.

EU Labelling Guidelines

The European Union has been progressively working on the rules and regulations that ensure transparent and safe business operations in European territory. For this purpose, the EU has set certain rules for the labeling of food and beverages. You can explore EU legislation for the provision of food information to customers.

Here are the things that you should mention in your product packaging labels:

• Food name.
• Net Quantity.
• Country origin.
• List of ingredients.
• Ingredient quantity.
• Best before, or use by dates.
• Information about the presence of allergens.
• Name and address of the business or the importer.
• Storage conditions and/or conditions of use if required.
• Specific warnings for items not recommended for consumption by children like caffeine.

Fair Packaging Labeling Act (FPLA)

The Fair Packaging and Labeling Act (FPLA), was established in 1967, that allows the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and FDA to set product labeling regulations. The basic requirement is that all the products covered by FPLA should bear a label with essential information.

A set of rules were designed that mandate product manufacturers to disclose product identity, name and location of business, and net contents in products through labels.

This act also allows the authorities to establish more regulations that avoid consumer deception. It makes it necessary for businesses to show more elaborate descriptions of product ingredients. Facilitating purchases of buyers by providing essential product information to them is the prime objective behind FPLA.

Over time, many amendments have been made to this act setting new labelling rules for informing consumers more about products. This packaging & labeling timeline diagram illustrates the amendments over time: