China Food Contact Material Testing - Regulatory News - Food & Food Contact Materials

Updated on 15 August 2016

In accordance with Food Safety Law of the People’s Republic of China (2015 version), food contact materials and articles (hereinafter referred to as FCM) shall be compliant with Chinese National Standards (GBs).

First of all, all FCM should comply with additive requirements according to GB 9685-2008 Hygienic standards for uses of additives in food containers and packaging materials. According to GB 9685, if some specific additives are added, the Specific Migration Limit (SML) test or Maximum Residue (QM) of some substances is necessary to conduct to guarantee the safety of the added additives. Based on the GB 9685-2008, companies are suggested to check if you have added the specific food contact additives into FCM and confirm the required test items.

Examples for some food contact additives:

Additive name	CAS No.	Required Test
Dibutyl phthalate(DBP)	84-74-2	0.3 mg/kg (SML)
Bisphenol A(BPA)	80-05-7	0.6 mg/kg (SML)
Ethylene oxide	75-21-8	1.0 mg/kg (QM)
1,3-butadiene	106-99-0	ND (SML, DL=0.02mg/kg) or 1.0 mg/kg (QM)

In the second place, FCM including plastics, silicone rubber, glass, enamel, ceramics, glass, metal, coating, bamboo products, paper and paper products, etc. has corresponding requirements according to commodity standards (GBs). Therefore, all FCM shall also comply with commodity standards (GBs). Meanwhile, it should be noticed that plastic has two standard requirements, one is for plastic resins and the other one is for finished plastic products. FCM companies are encouraged to test according to GBs to guarantee the product quality.

Examples of some relevant standards (GBs) for food contact material and articles:

Index	Specific FCM	GB No.	GB Name
Plastic resin
1	Polyvinyl chloride resin	GB 4803-1994	Hygienic standard for polyvinyl chloride resin used as food container and packaging material
2	Polyethylene resin	GB 9691-1988	Hygienic standard for polyethylene resin used as food packaging material
3	Polystyrene resin	GB 9692-1988	Hygienic standard for polystyrene resin used as food packaging material
4	Polypropylene resin	GB 9693-1988	Hygienic standard for polypropylene resin used as food packaging material
5	Polyethylene glycol terephthalate resin	GB 13114-1991	Hygienic standard for polyethylene terephthalate resin used as food containers and packaging materials
6	Polycarbonate resin	GB 13116-1991	Hygienic standard for polycarbonate resin used as food containers and packaging materials
7	Vinylidene chloride-vinyl chloride copolymer resin	GB 15204-1994	Hygienic standard of vinylidene chloride-vinyl chloride copolymer resins for food containers and packaging material
8	Nylon 6 resin	GB 16331-1996	Hygienic standard of nylon 6 resins food packaging material
Plastic product
9	Polyvinyl chloride product	GB 9681-1988	Hygienic standard of products of polyvinyl chloride for food packaging
10	Polyethylene product	GB 9687-1988	Hygienic standard for polyethylene products used as food containers and tableware
11	Polypropylene product	GB 9688-1988	Hygienic standard for polypropylene products used as food containers and tableware
12	Polystyrene product	GB 9689-1988	Hygienic standard for polystyrene products used as food containers and tableware
13	Melamine-formaldehyde Product	GB 9690-2009	Hygienic standard for melamine-formaldehyde products used as food containers and packaging materials
14	Polyethylene glycol terephthalate product	GB 13113-1991	Hygienic standard for polyethylene terephthalate products used as food containers and packaging materials
15	Unsaturated polyester resin and its glass fiber reinforced plastics product	GB 13115-1991	Hygienic standard of unsaturated polyester resin and glass fiber reinforced plastics used as food containers and packaging materials
16	Polycarbonate product	GB 14942-1994	Hygienic standard for polycarbonate products used as food containers and packaging materials
17	Nylon product	GB 16332-1996	Hygienic standard of products of nylon for food packaging material
18	Rubber-modified acrylonitrile- butadiene-styrene product	GB 17326-1998	Hygienic standard for rubber-modified acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene products used as food containers and packaging materials
19	Polyvinyl chloride for bottle sheet and granular materials	GB 14944-1994	Hygienic standard for bottle sheet and granular materials of polyvinyl chloride for food packaging
20	Acrylonitrile-styrene product	GB 17327-1998	Hygienic standard for acrylonitrile-styrene products used as food containers and packaging materials
Rubber
21	Rubber product	GB 4806.1-1994	Hygienic standard for foodstuff rubber products
22	Rubber nipple product	GB 4806.2-2015	National food safety standards: nipple
Paper
23	Paper product	GB 11680-1989	Hygienic standard for paper used for food packaging
24	Plant fiber product	GB 19305-2003	Hygienic standard for Plant fiber food containers
25	Paper based laminated material	GB/T 18706-2008	Paper based laminated material for fresh-keeping packaging of liquid food
Metal
26	Stainless steel	GB 9684-2011	Stainless steel product
27	Aluminum	GB 11333-1989	Hygienic standard for aluminum-wares for food uses
Coating
28	Perchloravinyl used as internal coating	GB 7105-1986	The sanitary specifications of perchloravinyl interior coating for food container
29	Phenol lacquer coating	GB 9680-1988	Hygienic standard of phenol lacquer for food container
30	Mold release coating	GB 9682-1988	Hygienic standard for mold release coating for the internal lacquer of food cans
31	Polyamide epoxy resin used as internal coating	GB 9686-2012	Hygienic standard for polyamide epoxy resin used as internal coating of food container
32	Organosilicon nonstick coating	GB 11676-2012	Hygienic standard of anti-coherent silicone paint for food container
33	water-based modified epoxy resin coating	GB 11677-2012	Hygienic standard for water-based modified epoxy resin coating for the internal lacquer of food cans
34	Polytetrafluoroethylene used as inner coating	GB 11678-1989	Hygienic standard for polytetrafluoroethylene used as inner coating of food containers
35	epoxy phenolic resin coating	GB 4805-1994	Hygienic standard for epoxy phenolic resin coating for the internal lacquer of food cans
Other product
36	Packaging glass containers	GB 19778-2005	The limit dissolving quantity of lead, cadmium, arsenic and antimony in packaging glass containers
37	Heat-resistant glassware	GB 17762-1999	Hygienic standard for heat-resistant glassware
38	Enamel	GB 4804-1984	Hygienic standard for enamel tableware containers
39	Ceramic	GB 13121-1991	Hygienic standard for ceramic tableware containers
40	Wooden chopsticks	GB 19790.1-2005	Disposable chopsticks, part 1: Wooden chopsticks
41	Bamboo chopsticks	GB 19790.2-2005	Disposable chopsticks, part 2: Bamboo chopsticks

In addition, NHFPC (National Health and Family Planning Commission of the People’s Republic of China) has released a series of FCM national food safety standards (draft version) in 2015, including additives, resin, plastic, rubber, metal, coating, paper and paperboard, etc. FCM companies are also encouraged to do the product pre-test according to the draft national standards.

Examples for some drafts:

GB 9685-201X National Standard for the Uses of Additives in Food Contact Materials and Articles
GB XXXX-201X National Food Safety Standards Food contact plastic resin
GB XXXX-201X National Food Safety Standards Food contact plastic materials and products
GB XXXX-201X National Food Safety Standards Food contact rubber materials and products
GB XXXX-201X National Food Safety Standards Food contact metal materials and products
GB XXXX-201X National Food Safety Standards Food contact paper, paperboard and its products
GB XXXX-201X National Food Safety Standards Food contact coating
GB XXXX-201X National Food Safety Standards Glass products
GB XXXX-201X National Food Safety Standards Ceramic products

CIRS is providing testing services according to relevant Standards (GBs) above. Please pay attention to the GB name to identify the appropriate standards, or contact us at service@cirs-group.com for more information.

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