FAQ Regarding The FDA and Packaging Products
The US Food & Drug Administration's Role in Regulating Packaging
The US Food & Drug Administration is the leading department of regulating packaging, ingredients, and sale of products in the US. When packaging products many questions may arise as to how the FDA affects your operation.
- Q. What does the FDA do?
- A. The FDA states that the primary responsibility of the administration is to protect the public health with assuring foods, OTC and prescribed drugs, vaccines, tobacco products, dietary supplements, cosmetics and other products used by consumers are safe, correctly labeled and sanitary.
- Q. What does "FDA Approved" mean?
- A. Purchasing from SKS includes an expansive inventory of containers and caps. "FDA Approved" for these products means the plastics, coatings, adhesives, colorants, and antimicrobials used during manufacturing have passed testing completed by the FDA. The materials have been deemed safe to package food, cosmetics, medicines, tobacco and other products that can be consumed or come in direct contact with consumers. So if you were interested one of our versatile plastic bottles, we would be able to confirm if the plastic bottles are manufactured with FDA approved materials.
- Q. What does "BPA Free" mean?
- A. BPA stands for Bisphenol A which is a chemical used in the production of some plastics and resins, and also some food can liners. Plastics with the recycle code of 3 or 7 have a high chance of containing BPA. The FDA completed various tests on the direct effects of BPA and have many articles available showing the results. As of now a product does not need to be BPA free to be FDA approved, but many manufacturers of plastic containers have moved towards BPA free production. SKS has a full inventory of BPA free plastic cap, bottles, jars, vials, tubes, tubs, pails and bags.
- Q. Where do I find FDA packaging requirements for my industry?
- A. The FDA has an abundant amount of information available for all the different industries it regulates, and the materials researched. A good way to start is visiting the For Industry page on the FDA website. Here you can navigate to the industry category that your products are associated with and get the information you need for each step of the production.
- Q. Where do I find labeling requirements by the FDA?
- A. SKS carries customizable labels in various shapes and sizes, and has a useful starting point when understanding the FDA's labeling standards and regulations.
- Q. What is the difference between the FDA and the USDA?
- A. While the FDA and USDA work together, the USDA focuses more on the agriculture, meat, poultry, and innovations to improve these industries. The FDA will conduct the vast majority of testing, and oversee the regulations on food and products used by consumers.
For many of our customers, the USDA is an excellent reference for canning and preserving guidelines and preparations. - Q. How do I obtain documentation for the packaging I purchased?
- A. If you have purchased your glass, plastic or metal containers or caps from SKS, we can request documentation for a FDA approval letter from the manufacturer.
- Q. What if my product is sold and shipped internationally?
- A. The FDA has numerous International Programs that can assist from all different aspects of international commerce.
- Q. How does the FDA influence my small business?
- A. From aromatherapy, to food, cosmetics and much more SKS is happy to assist any size company locate the packaging best for their products. The FDA understands that smaller businesses won't have the resources as a large multinational corporation, so they have created an informative section on their website to make cooperation and assistance as accessible as possible.
Even if right now it doesn't seem like the FDA has anything to do with your business, it's good to know the state and federal regulations for your industry and products, to make sure as you grow transitions happen as smoothly as possible. SKS has the capability of handling any size order, providing samples of our products for testing, and have resources available to help small businesses grow and expand while not decreasing standards and the design of your products.
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