Where packing is concerned, meeting the relevant standards is essential. There’s no point spending hours developing a product, only to fail to properly contain it. You could face plenty of negative reviews from your customers, and some significant fines too! Quality packaging needs to be both attractive and effective; minimising damage and hygiene risk, while delighting and appealing to your target buyer.

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Fillcon’s industry leading sampling solutions are tried and tested – trusted by all sorts of industries. Our clients know our quality service and rigorous checks mean every sachet leaving our doors is well designed and fully functional. And we don’t stop there! Fillcon can also fill bottles, pouches, aluminium tubes, and eco-friendly packaging options as well.

In this article, our sachet specialists explain what the legal regulations are for product packaging in the UK.

What are the Essential Requirements for Packaging in the UK?

According to the Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations 2015, businesses responsible for packing or filling products into packaging should not place it on the market without making sure it fulfils the following criteria.

  1. The packaging should have a volume or weight that is the minimum amount needed to maintain the safety and hygiene of the product for the consumer. This essentially means you are free to design and use packaging in a way that suits you, so long as it’s not unnecessarily bulky.
  2. The packaging must be manufactured in such a way as to permit material recovery and reuse where possible, though there is no indicated preference for material types. Despite this, businesses should consider the overall environmental impact of their packaging.
  3. The packaging should release the minimum amount possible of emissions, ash, and leachate when it undergoes incineration or landfill disposal at end of life.
  4. The weight of heavy metals like lead, cadmium, mercury, and hexavalent chromium should be lower than 100ppm.

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Packaging Regulations for Hazardous Products

If your business manufactures or packages any product that contains a hazardous material or chemical, there are some further regulations you will need to keep in mind. Because of the danger these products can pose to public health, it’s vital you make sure your packaging is up to the task! Ask yourself these questions:

  • Does my packaging prevent the escape of the chemical?
  • Is my packaging unaffected by the chemical?
  • Will the packaging withstand normal handling?
  • If it has a replaceable closure, will the packaging continue to contain product after use?
  • Does it have child resistant closures and tactile warnings for the visually impaired?

If your answer to all of these questions is yes and you can prove this, your packaging is likely to be effective and able to contain your product safely.

Packaging Regulations for Medicines

The main thing to consider with medicines is whether or not the packaging needs to be child resistant. If the medicine contains Aspirin, Paracetamol, or more than 24mg of elemental iron, it will need to be packaged in such a way that children will struggle to open it, but adults including the elderly will not. If the product is effervescent or in single dose units, however, this does not apply. Medicine packaging also needs to include a Patient Information Leaflet.

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Labelling Requirements

Of course, no good packaging is complete without an equally good label! Depending on the type of product you’re packaging, there will be different things to include. Across all industries, though, the most important thing is that the label is clear and easy to understand. This is not a time for ambiguity!

Cosmetics

Cosmetic labels will need the name and address of the responsible person based in the UK, a quantity declaration, the durability date, any warnings and precautions, the batch number, function, and ingredients alongside the country of origin.

See more: Beauty and Cosmetic Labelling Requirements

Medicines

Medicine labels must be printed directly onto packaging and should include warnings for safe use, statutory warnings, and other precautionary notices depending on the contents. Medicine packaging should also include this information as braille somewhere on the packaging.

Hazardous Products

When it comes to hazardous products and chemicals, the label should be firmly attached to one or more sides and include the name, address, and phone number of the supplier, the quantity of substance, and any product identifiers. It should also feature hazard pictograms, signal words, hazard and precautionary statements, and any other applicable information.

Fulfil the UK Packaging Regulations with Fillcon

At Fillcon, we’re ISO 9001 certified, and conduct meticulous checks of all our batches before they are approved for release to market. From pressure and vacuum testing to weight monitoring and visual inspection, our rigorous examinations ensure only the highest quality products leave our facility.

If you want to make sure you’re meeting the regulations, we can create a filling solution tailored to your business.

Talk to us about our services today!

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