EU Product Labelling and Disposal Labelling
Labelling of products, packaging and instruction manuals
What is important?
In the interest of transparent consumer information and the identifiability of important product parameters, the legislative bodies of product compliance place a high value on informative and formally flawless product labelling, as well as the labelling of packaging.
In addition to the classic mandatory labelling such as the producer's address, CE marking, restrictions on use and suitability or article description, new requirements such as disposal instructions, consumption data or electronic references to further product information to be provided are also being added. The legal requirements for product labelling can be transnational (e.g. Product Safety Ordinance, Toy Ordinance, WEEE, Battery Ordinance) or differ from country to country (e.g. waste labelling, recyclability). An electronic reference to a product passport will also be unavoidable in the future (e.g. Ecodesign Ordinance, Batteries Regulation).
Why is EU product and disposal labelling required?
Product labelling and disposal labelling in the EU is important to facilitate the collection, reuse and recovery (including recycling) of products respectively packaging.
Who is required to label packaging and how?
Manufacturers, importers and online retailers are defined as producers and are subject to the direct or indirect obligation to properly label them in accordance with country-specific regulations. It should be noted that in case of doubt not only B2C but also B2B packaging (e.g. Italy) has to be taken into account.
97/129/EC: more and more member states are introducing a requirement to use the alphanumeric codes established by the EU Commission to identify the packaging material.
Marking according to 97/129/EC: is mandatory for example in Latvia, Italy, Malta etc.
Other labelling requirements: are required for example in France.
Voluntary labelling: is desirable for example for Portugal, Poland etc.
If material is specified, then according to 97/129/EC: is relevant for example in Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, etc.
Get your labelling check now
Product Labelling
We check your product labelling, including disposal labelling.
Packaging Labelling
The labelling of your packaging can also be checked separately.
Instruction Manual
If your product requires an instruction manual, its labelling must also be checked.
Disposal Labelling
We check your disposal labelling and separation instructions, e.g. material labelling.
Product and disposal labelling requirements at a glance
As a general rule, product or disposal labels should be clearly visible, legible, sufficiently durable and stable, even after the packaging has been opened.
- Triman symbol: It is mandatory on household packaging in France. The consumer has to be informed about the existing sorting regulations. It can be freely applied.
- Möbius loop with alphanumeric codes: The Möbius loop must be applied to all packaging in some countries; in others, the application requires accreditation.
- Tidyman: Mandatory on all packaging in Bulgaria. Should lead to disposal in designated waste containers. It can be freely applied.
- Sorting information: Country-specific sorting information on packaging are intended to indicate to consumers the correct waste disposal. In France, freely available only to registered producers and their suppliers.
Should you wish to register in the EU as a producer of WEEE, batteries, packaging, textiles or furniture, please do not hesitate to contact our Consulting Department via beratung@take-e-way.de or +49/40/7506870.
For more in-depth advice on EU product or packaging labelling requirements and especially disposal labelling, please contact or trade-e-bility Consulting Team via beratung@trade-e-bility.de or +49/40/750687-300.
We also offer other international compliance services related to the placing on the market of electronic equipment, batteries/accumulators and packaged products or packaging.