Detailing Standards of Cosmetic Packaging in China

Stakeholders who plan to export cosmetics to China should pay more attention to cosmetic packaging and learn Chinese regulations. China issued one "Requirements of packaging appearance for cosmetic products" and one "Requirements of restricting excessive package – foods and cosmetics" to regulate cosmetic packaging in appearance, form, each component's standard, and restriction of package layers and interspace ratios. Compared with the other Asian countries, packaging requirements in China are more concrete, complicated and stricter. Here I attempt to clarify detailed requirements of cosmetic packaging in China.

Classification of packaging:

In China, cosmetic packages are classified into 10 categories by its forms and materials:

1) Bottle (plastic bottle, glass bottle, etc.)

2) Lid/ cover (outer lid/cover, inner lid/cover (plug, pad, and mask), etc.)

3) Bag (paper bag, plastic bag, compound bag)

4) Tube (plastic tube, compound tube, metal tube, etc.)

5) Box (plastic carton, plastic box, metal box, etc.)

6) Spraying jar (pressure proof aluminum jar, iron jar, etc.)

7) Ingot pipe (lipstick, foundation pipe, mascara pipe, etc.)

8) Cosmetic pencil

9) Burner cap (air pressure type, pump type);

10) Outer package (decorated package, plastic seal, middle package, shipment package, etc. )

Materials applied to packaging must to safe and not harm human body.

Requirements of packaging appearance

1. Print and label stick

    1.1 pattern and character on packages should be printed in clean, uneasy to remove/scratch and color-accordant way;

    1.2 the label stick should not be mistaken, omitted, upside down, and should be solidly attached;

    1.3 label on the packaging should obey GB 5296.3.

2. For Bottle

    2.1 the bottle should be steady, smooth; the wall of bottle should be within the same thickness and no obvious clues, distortion, cold explosion and crack;

    2.2 the bottle mouth should be upright, smooth, without burr; thread and bayo should be connected well;

    2.3 the connection between bottle and lid should be tightened, no screw loosing, no fetching away and no leaking;

    2.4 the bottle should be clean insight and out.

3. For lid

♦ Inner lid:

    Should be entire, smooth, clean and not distorted; be connected with bottle and outer lid well; should not be leaking;

♦ Outer lid:

    3.1 Should be upright, smooth; no crack, clues and burr;

    3.2 be in color-accordantly;

    3.3 the structure of threads should be connected well;

    3.4 be in color-accordantly with alumite and gilding;

    3.5 flip type should be flexible, and no breakage in connection part;

    3.6 the connection between bottle and lid should be tightened, no screw loosing, no fetching away.

4. For Bag

    4.1 intolerance of pucker, scratch and air bubble;

    4.2 be color accordant

    4.3 the seal should be solid, without opening, piercing and leaking;

    4.4 compound bag should be compounded solidly and coating film accordantly;

5. For Tube

    5.1 the body of tube should be smooth, clean, in the same thickness, color-accordant and no obvious scratching;

    5.2 the seal should be solid, upright, without opening and pucker (excluding normal mode impression);

    5.3 the lid of tube should comply with the requirements of "3. for lid";

    5.4 the compound film of tube should be no embossing phenomena.

6. For Box

    6.1 the appearance of box should be smooth, upright, no obvious scratching, burr, serious impression and damage phenomena;

    6.2 the tightness of opening should be proper, when taking out the decorated box, mustn't tear up by fingers; when pinching the margin, the bottom won't drop off;

    6.3 the mirror surface, container and box should be attached solid, the mirror reflection is good, no obvious scratching and damage phenomena.

7. For Spraying jar

    7.1 the body of jar should be flat, no rust, no obvious scratching, no sunken phenomena, and be color accordant; the welding line should be flat;

    7.2 the flanging mouth of the jar should be flat, no break and no distortion;

    7.3 the lid of the jar should comply with the requirements of "outer lid".

8. For Ingot pipe

    8.1 the body should be upright, smooth, color accordant, no break, no burr and no obvious scratching;

    8.2 the tightness of parts should be proper, and the content should be normally pushed out or rotated out.

9. For Cosmetic pencil

    9.1 the stick and the cap should be smooth, upright and no tackles; the paint film is not cracking;

    9.2 the tightness and fitness of the stick and the cap should be proper;

    9.3 should be color accordant.

10. For Burner cap

    10.1 the burner cap should be upright, clean, no damage and cracking;

    10.2 the parts of burner cap should be complete to ensure the liquid unblocked.

11. For Outer package

♦ 11.1 Decorated package

     11.1.1 the decorated package and middle package should be matching tightly;

     11.1.2 should be clean, upright, flat, lid covered, no pucker, no chipped margin and no chipped edge;

     11.1.3 the stick part should be solid, no sticking clues, no cracking and no mis-sticking phenomena;

     11.1.4 no wrapped by mistake, omission and upside down;

♦ 11.2 Middle package

     11.2.1 should be matched tightly with decorated package;

     11.2.2 should be clean, upright, flat and lid covered;

     11.2.3 the stick part should be solid, no sticking clues, no cracking and no mis-sticking phenomena;

     11.2.4 no wrapped by mistake, omission and upside down;

     11.2.5 the label on middle package should be upright, clean, complete, and should mention the name, specification, figure and manufacture of the products.

♦11.3 Plastic seal

     11.3.1 should be sticking solidly and no cracking;

     11.3.2 the appearance should be clean and no damage;

     11.3.3 no wrapped by mistake, omission and upside down

♦ 11.4 Shipment package

     11.4.1 should be clean, upright and smooth, and the sealing box should be solid;

     11.4.2 the product should not be wrapped by mistake, omission and upside down;

     11.4.3 the label on the shipment packages should be clean, complete and in proper position, and should mention the name, manufacturer’s name and address, net content, figures, weight, volume, production date, expiry date, batch number and best-before date of the product. Label the pattern from GB/191 when necessary.

Restriction of excessive cosmetic packages

China issued a GB to restrict cosmetic package layers and package interspace ratio (unnecessary space volume of product package/ total volume of product package).