16 CFR 1700 Certification: How it works and how we can help
When you have product that you want to share with the world, it can be difficult to find time to focus on all the different laws and regulations but it's important to keep up on what affects your industry. Now, we're not offering legal advice by any means and we strongly encourage that you seek that out if you have any questions on how a certain law or regulation relates to your business. But, we do love learning and sharing.
We have recently performed research on the Poison Prevention Packaging Act (aka 16 CFR 1700) and we would like to let you know what we have learned.
The Poison Prevention Packaging Act (16 CFR 1700) of 1970 requires a number of household substances to be packaged in child-resistant packaging. In order to gain a packaging certification, a third party company gives the package to 50 children and 50 senior citizens with a time frame to open it. Child-resistant packaging must be difficult for a child under five to open but not too difficult for an adult. If you need more information, and are looking for an exhilarating read, check out the official government page for the Poison Prevention Packaging Act.
So, the good news is that you don't have to round up your two-year-old nieces and nephews and 90-year-old grandparents and have them test your packaging. Plus, that won't cut it from a legal perspective. The even better news is that we have done a lot of this testing for you.
PLEASE NOTE
Packaging certifications are awarded to the combination of a container and a closure; a package. In order to be compliant, and to have the proper certifications, the container and closure combination must be tested together by a third party.This certification will only permit the combinations listed thereon. You can't mix and match certificates.
How can I tell which items are certified?
Easy! Look for this purple badge. We have a large one and a mini one.
The Purple Badge is copyrighted by Container and Packaging and may not be used for any purpose without written permission from Container and Packaging. Copyright © 2016, Container and Packaging – All rights reserved.
Browse to any item page (that HAS been certified) and look for the purple badge. Below, the purple badge tells you that this glass bottle has been paired with closures that have undergone certification.
Scroll down to Matching Items and look for the purple badge. Because these two items are on the same page AND they both have purple badges, they have been certified together.
If you CLICK on any purple badge, it will show you which items are certified with it. So this glass bottle has been certified with three different droppers. Nifty, huh?!
What if the items I want are not certified?
Unfortunately, not all of our child-resistant closures and containers that fit each other have been certified. In order to obtain this certification, a child-resistant poison prevention study must be conducted by an independent third party.
What documents do I need?
There are two documents that Container and Packaging provides:
- General Certificate of Conformity (GCC): a certificate issued by a manufacturer or importer stating that the item complies with all applicable consumer product safety rules.
- Test Results: documentation issued by the third party testing company.
Where can I find these documents?
In order to get GCC's and Test Results from Container and Packaging, you must:
- Purchase a certified package (container and closure) from containerandpackaging.com.
- Log in to your account.
- Navigate to your Order History page and look for the purple badge next to the order.
- Click on the badge to download your documents.
How do I browse your certified items?
This is also easy! We’ve grouped all of our certified items onto one page. Let’s get started!
Shop 16 CFR 1700 certified items
If you have any trouble with obtaining your documentation, or have any questions about 16 CFR 1700 compliance, please call our Customer Support team at 1-800-473-4144 or ask questions in the comments.