Packaging and Product Traceability
French Packaging Council – All Rights Reserved – March 2015
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Foreword: A Message from the Chairman
Traceability is a major trend nowadays. Citizens and consumers are eager for knowledge. They
want to know everything. The internet is another reason for this ever-growing trend since it
enables people to react faster than our forbearers ever could. Everything has become a leitmotiv!
We know that the major and persisting trends in our society undoubtedly have an impact on our
living conditions and the products we use. Using products implies using packaging as well.
As a consequence, traceability has an impact on packaging, an impact that will be greater in the
near future. That is why the CNE (the French Packaging Council) wants this topic, which goes
well beyond packaging, to be broadly discussed.
Firstly, as usual, we need to define what traceability means in our line of work. Then, we will
analyse it through relevant and complimentary points of view.

Traceability regarding users and consumers’ health and safety means informing them
on the substances contained in the product (including in the packaging)/, allergies/ lot
numbers/ recall procedures/ tamper-evident technology/legally responsible person/
shelf life/ safety guidelines/ precautions for use/ information on recycling.
This type of traceability must guarantee that the product is perfectly safe to use, from
its purchase to the final phase of its lifecycle.

Traceability regarding the country of origin, place of provenance and logistics provides
information on the origin of the substances/ country/place of production and storage/
the type of transport/ the follow-up of dates, places and storage conditions
(temperatures, pressure, humidity)/ the impact on the environment.
This type of traceability should help the consumer/user understand how the product
was produced and transported, so that, if need be, the informed decision they make
as to whether or not to buy to the product is not solely based on the price (for
example: I do not want to buy strawberries produced in Chili).

Traceability regarding counterfeiting gives assurance that the product does come from
the brand that is indicated on the product. This traceability must guarantee that the
product is not counterfeit.
In fine, we need to be able to answer the simple questions below:
-
Why do we need traceability (regulation, voluntary initiative, etc.)?
How can it be applied? How can it be formalised?
What does it mean for packaging in the future?
Michel Fontaine
Chairman of CNE
French Packaging Council – All Rights Reserved – March 2015
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Summary
Traceability is a regulatory requirement for numerous products. With this document, the French
Package Council (CNE) shows how important packaging is as a tool for traceability because, on
the one hand, traceability is carried out through packaging, and on the other hand,
because packaging is often the only tool by which traceability can be ascertained.
Using a couple of examples, CNE shows that traceability has several dimensions. Traceability can
be upstream (the origin of the packaging, the resources used to make it, the type of life cycle,
etc.). It can be downstream (user/consumer information on the type of product, measures
against counterfeit or falsified products, etc.). Traceability can cover the entire supply chain of
the product/packaging pairing (knowing on time where the products/packaging are, managing
the flows, calling the products back, managing logistics, etc.) in a downward manner (in order to
find the product location, especially in case of a recall/withdrawal) or in an upward manner (in
order to trace the origin and characteristics of a product, especially in case of quality issues).
As proved by these examples, packaging is a crucial tool for traceability, all the more so since it
is required by law itself (European Directive 94/62/EC), especially when it comes to performance
criteria, such as consumer information, safety and, even, logistics.
Considering its purpose, traceability may require the use of techniques or the association of
different materials. The French Package Council indicates the sources of information and the
best practices in terms of design so that the packaging retains its traceability function while
taking into account its real recyclability.
French Packaging Council – All Rights Reserved – March 2015
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Table of contents
Foreword: A Message from the Chairman
page 2
Summary
page 3
1. Context/Purpose of Traceability
page 5
2. Definitions
page 6
3. Regulation
page 8
4. Implementing Traceability
page 10
5. Traceability and the Environment
page 14
6. Some Examples of Traceability
page 16
7. Appendices
page 24
8. Acknowledgements
page 31
French Packaging Council – All Rights Reserved – March 2015
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1. Context and Purpose of Traceability
 Context
According to WHO1, one out of two medicines sold on internet websites in 2012 was counterfeit.
This counterfeit medicine business is worth 75 billion euros2 worldwide.
In 2006, an Ipsos study was already pointing out that counterfeit food represented 10% of all
seized counterfeit products.
Beyond counterfeiting, recent events show that traceability is necessary in order to trace the
product and its components at each step of the supply chain.
The use of packaging to trace the product is one of the tools guaranteeing the global safety of
packaged products and consumers.
It is also one of the performance criteria that must be analysed within the context of standard
NF EN 13428.
 Purpose
Regarding traceability, packaging must guarantee:
Traceability regarding consumer and user health and safety
 Give information to the consumer and end user (on the origin, the provenance, the date
of durability, etc.),
 Preserve the integrity of the package/product pairing against any violation,
 Protect the consumer, the user (safety),
 Abide by regulatory requirements when, by law, the packaged product must be traced,
 Understand the impact of raw materials on processes/products,
 Use a potential competitive advantage: ‘assert traceability as one of the company’s core
values’.
Traceability regarding origin-provenance-logistics
 Register the history of the product life cycle,
 Be able to ensure the product withdrawal/recall,
 Guarantee better control of logistic operations and follow transport and delivery
operations in real-time,
 Manage remnants and losses at best,
 Guarantee traceability control,
 Optimise quality management of products and processes.
Traceability regarding counterfeiting
 Prove the authenticity of the product: fight against counterfeiting
 Establish liability.
1
2
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs275/en/
Institute of Research Against Counterfeit Medicines (IRACM)
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2. Definitions
2.1 Traceability
Traceability is an obligation, which can be directly or indirectly required by regulation.
It covers almost all types of products (food products, cosmetic products, household products,
pharmaceutical products, toys, etc.). Traceability is a way to ensure that all products on the
market are safe for use.
Here, the CNE offers a number of definitions taken from standards and regulations.
 The ability to retrace the history, use or location of a product by the means of recorded
identification.3
 The ability to trace the history, application or location of that which is under consideration
with an additional clause which states that “when relating to products, traceability can be
specifically linked to the origin of materials and parts, the processing history, and the
distribution and location of the product after delivery.” 4
 The ability to trace and follow a material or article through all stages of production,
processing and distribution.5
 The ability to trace and follow foodstuff, feed, food-producing animals or substances
intended to be, or expected to be, incorporated into a food or feed, through all stages of
production, processing and distribution.6
Traceability can be defined through the flow of products:
 Upstream traceability means all the procedures and tools implemented before another
player takes part in the production chain. It helps identify all the suppliers and raw
materials involved. It is also called “N-1 traceability”.
 Downstream traceability is all the procedures and tools implemented once the product is
delivered to a third party. It helps identify all the clients and products provided. It is also
called “N+1 traceability”.
 Internal traceability represents all the information that helps define all the steps
undertaken between the reception of the raw materials and the manufacturing of the end
product.
3
4
5
6
NF EN ISO 8402 standard
ISO 9000:2000 standard
Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004
Codex Alimentarius and the European regulation EC 178/2002
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2.2 Packaging
See definition in chapter7, appendices page 24
It is important to identify the core elements of the performance criteria defined in standard EN
13428 ‘Prevention by Source Reduction’ as these parameters entail the management of
traceability.
Traceability is then at the core of criteria such as the protection of the product, logistics,
information and safety.
These performance criteria generally go hand in hand with requirements regarding the product,
its transport, and the protection of the consumer/user. They remind us that packaging has a part
to play in the way companies manage traceability.
Source: CNE
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3. Regulation
CNE gives a few examples of regulatory laws concerning traceability (for additional information,
see chapter 7, appendices).
Reference
EU regulation
French regulation
All types of
products
Directive 2001/95 on
general product safety
French Consumer Code
Art. L221-1-4
Marketed products must
meet security requirements
and entities must transmit
information on the risks
linked to this type of
product.
Food products
Regulation 178/2002: law
laying down the general
principles and requirements of
food law.
Framework law of the Hygiene
Package
French Consumer Code
Art. L 214-1 al. 9
Mandatory mentions,
information and traceability
Regulation 1169/2011
on the provision of food
information to consumers
regarding consumer safety
(origin labelling)
Idem
Directive 2011/91on
indications or marks
identifying the lot to which a
foodstuff belongs
Art. R. 112-2.
reference identifying the lot of
foodstuff
Related
standards
HACCP
ISO 9000
ISO 22 005:
RASFF7:
2007
The Rapid Alert
Traceability in the System for Food
feed and food
and Feed.
chain
Regulation 1830/2003
Art. R214-4
concerning the traceability of on GMO pursuant to European
genetically modified organisms directives
Fishery
products
7
Commission Implementing
regulation 931/2011
on traceability requirements
set by Regulation (EC) No
178/2002
Regulation1224/2009
Regulation 1379/2013
Articles 7 and 13
EU
alert system
RAPEX:
All products
with the
exception of
foodstuff,
Pharmaceutical
products and
medical devices
ISO
12875:
2011
Traceability of
fishery products
http://ec.europa.eu/food/safety/rasff/index_en.htm
French Packaging Council – All Rights Reserved – March 2015
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References
EU regulation
Pharmaceutical Directive 2011/62
products
on the prevention of the entry
into the legal supply
chain of falsified medicinal
products
Toys
Cosmetic
products
Packaging
Directive 2009/48
on the safety of toys
Regulation 1223/2009
on cosmetic products
French regulation
Related
standards
EU alert
system
RAPEX
ISO 22716
(Cosmetics
Good
Manufacturing
Practices)
RAPEX
French Public Health
Code
Ordnance no. 20121427of 19 December 2012
on reinforcing the security of
the supply chain of
medicines, restricting online
sales of medicines and the
combat against falsified
medicines
Decree no. 2012-1562of
31 December 2012 on
reinforcing the security of
the supply chain of
medicines and supervising
online sale of medicines
Ministerial Order of 18
December 2012 amending
the ministerial order of 24
February 2010 laying down the
procedures for implementing
decree no. 2010-166 of 22
February 2010 on the safety of
toys
Ministerial Order of 31
July2013 amending the
ministerial order of 24
February 2010 laying down the
procedures for implementing
decree no. 2010-166 of 22
February 2010 on the safety of
toys
French Public Health
Code
Articles L5134-1 to
L5134-9
Regulation1935/2004
on materials and articles
intended to come into contact
with foodstuff: art 17
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4. Implementing Traceability
4.1 Introduction
In this chapter, packaging is presented as a way to ensure traceability: the packaging
must include an indication tracing the product it contains.
The CNE draws a non-comprehensive list of the means for implementing the traceability of the
product/packaging pairing8.
Marking is one of the tools used to ensure traceability. It makes the identification of a product
easier; when there are different trading partners along the industrial and logistics chain,
markings must be functional (legible and usable by everyone).
The information regarding traceability includes:
 Legal notices
 If a single product is traced:
o Product identification number;
o Unique serial number.
 When tracing products with product batches:
o Product identification number;
o Lot number (logistics lot and production batch).
There are standards in all sectors, which translate into several types:
 GS1 standards on product codification and marking, among which:
o GTIN (Global Trade Item Number) to identify a product (consumer unit, logistic
unit)
o SSCC (Serial Shipping Container Code) to identify a parcel
 GS1 standards for identifying companies and locations:
GLN (Global Location Number) for identifying the destination

Standards for identifying medicines:
o CIP 13 code for medicines

Standards for identifying parts in the automotive industry:
o The Galia code of the vehicle
In order to combat counterfeiting, security printing is a crucial economic lever for brands that
need to trace their products because of counterfeit products that challenge them on their own
markets.
4.2
The main marking technologies on paper and cardboard
4.2.1 Visible markers
This type of marking does not need to be revealed and aims mostly at enabling the
consumer to identify the product and to deterring counterfeiting. Its authenticity can
be verified by sight.
Besides anti-violation systems (markers that are directly affixed to the container, shrink films or
labels), the following technologies can be applied to paper and cardboard:
8

serialisation: the identification of each product by an individual number

holographic image: the most common visible marking. It can be two or three
dimensional, and is mostly used for luxury products, pharmaceutical products and alcohol,
etc. It is based on the use of self-adhesive stickers that may contain elements enabling
traceability.
Written with the help of CTP(The Pulp and Paper Research & Technical Centre) and GS1
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
watermarks
These processes are based on the intrinsic characteristics of the product, which are used
as a mean of authentication.
They guarantee the protection of brands, the traceability of industrial products, and the
authentication and safety of digital data and images as well as that of printed documents.
Watermarks have become a symbol of safety, as they have been effective for years. A
watermark is a pattern (portrait or emblem, etc.) affixed to the paper during
manufacturing that is mostly visible when the paper is held up to the light. This pattern is
incorporated into the paper paste during the manufacturing of the sheets. It is based on
the variation of the thickness and density of the paper, which translates into differences in
opacity. It can hardly be seen under reflected light, but is easily seen under transmitted
light.
Watermarks are probably the first elements based on optical variation that were invented.
They date back to the 13th century and were used at the beginning to identify some paper
formats, then some types of paper and eventually the paper mills themselves. Nowadays,
watermarks are an identification tool that is strongly promoted by Interpol, as they are
really hard to reproduce.
4.2.2 Coded or invisible markings
This type of marking requires the use of tools in order to be interpreted and even when they are
affixed to an object, they do no concern the end user.
Barcodes

One-dimensional barcodes – They are affixed to the container and/or the packaging
These were the first codes to be printed on packaging or tags in 1973.
Bar codes are made of a code represented by numbers and a symbol represented by
bars.
European countries refer to theGS1 EAN (Gencod EAN in France) (European Article
Numbering). This is an international barcode standard9 for coding and marking which
covers several symbols, among which the most widely spread is EAN 13.
The use of a barcode enables the manufacturer to identify each unit composing a lot from
the manufacturing process to distribution. It makes it easier for distributors to manage
their stocks, among other things.
The use of barcodes is subjected to physical requirements such as the dimension and
form of the support, the background colour, etc.
This type of code must be associated with an optical reading device.

Two-dimensional barcodes
These are two-dimensional barcodes (or matrix codes) made of black dots arranged on
white squares. There are two protocols, which serve the same purpose:
 Datamatrix, notably used in the health sector in France.
 QR (Quick Response Code) often linked to a URL address.
These two codes are intended to be read by two-dimensional readers such as mobile
phones or smartphones. They can hold more information than linear codes.
9
For additional information, see GS1
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
RFID tags– They are put on/in the product or packaging itself.
This technology enables contactless product marking and reading.
RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) consists in attaching an electronic tag to a product
or its packaging or container. The electronic tag contains information that can be used to
manage stocks and trace products and is read with a specific device.
A RFID system is made of 3 elements:
o The tag:
 is made of an antenna to communicate with reading devices and a chip with a
unique number and with or without additional memory,
 is affixed to the element to be identified,
 can have different designs (card, pellet, token, capsule, adhesive stickers),
 it is either read-only (most common case):the data transferred by the
manufacturer cannot be modified or completed afterwards; or read-write: the user
can add information or write over existing information contained in the tag from
afar,
 it is either active (with an internal power source) to power additional memory, a
sensor… or passive: data transmission to the tag is based on a remote power
supply.
o The reader enables communication with the tag,
o The information system (IS) manages the functions and processes that either have
an impact on the data exchanged with the tag or use them,
All these components guarantee:
 the physical traceability of exchanges(frequency, data transfer rate, modulation,
etc...),a piece of information that follows the unit along the different steps of the
supply chain,
 the logical management of exchanges, notably to enable upstream and
downstream traceability (protocols),
 the storage of data, which will guarantee better traceability for all the
stakeholders.
Integrating it into the manufacturing of the packaging helps to reduce the cost of the tag,
increases transparency and optimises its use, for example, the distance from which it can be
read.10
It is important to note that chipless RFID systems are being designed (CTP11) to:
 decrease tag cost (the cost of the chip represents around 2/3 of the final cost),
 increase data safety (read-only)
 improve recyclability (no chip, no glue, no copper antenna),
 increase reliability: unaffected by temperature or vibrations.

Microelectromechanical Systems
Systems, the size of which can vary from a few microns to a few dozens of nanometres.
o Impervious to autoclaving, gamma sterilization and humidification
o Immune to electromagnetic waves
To date, they are seldom used in the packaging industry

Cryptoglyph12 crypto = crypting, Glyph = marking
The markings are made of numerous microdots, invisible to the naked eye and printed by
the standard equipment belonging to the manufacturers/printers of secondary or primary
packaging, among which paper and cardboard packaging: AlpVision is the only technology
which enables the embedding of dots in the imperfections of the printed material.
10
Expérience industrielle du projet DECARTE (Industrial experiment lead by DECARTE Project) –The Pulp
and Paper Research & Technical Centre
11
A. Vena, E. Perret, S. Tedjini, G. Eymin-Petot-Tourtollet, A. Delattre, F. Garet, Y. Boutant, “Design of
Chipless RFID Tags Printed on Paper by Flexography,” IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation,
vol. 61, no. 12, pp. 5868 - 5877, Dec. 20
12
Technology designed and patented by Swiss company AlpVision SA.
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4.2.3 Expert markings
This type of marking covers markings that require tools to be read and checked.
Chemical marking is the most widespread technology. It is based on the introduction of
molecules (artificial DNA, nanoparticles, etc.) into the chemical makeup of the material in order
to be able to precisely identify it. This process is generally used in the automotive industry,
polymers, electronics, domestic appliances and packaging made of paper or cardboard, for
example.
This technology allows:




Traceability to integrated into the material
Easier identification of materials
environmentally-friendly product design from the manufacturing process onwards in order
to manage the last step of their lifecycle (sorting, recycling or recovering secondary raw
materials)
traceability of materials and products at each step of their lifecycle.
4.3 Printing techniques
Security markings are part of the printing process: invisible inks, UV, infrared, microspheres and
artificial DNA. They have been adapted to the different printing techniques. The fact that there
are different processes makes it easier to combine different security markings, when needed. For
instance, invisible inks printed with inkjet digital presses will make it possible to personalize the
lots. However, the size of the drops in the Piezo inkjet printing technique does not make it
possible to emboss micro particles. These are then printed using screen-printing, heliography or
flexography.
The security printing market adapts to the brands’ demands, which can vary depending on the
sector.

Microprinting– Microtag
Microtags are a microscopic technology that aims at countering counterfeiting and
increasing traceability. This technology is based on the piling of numerous coloured layers
that form a digital code.

Printing with colour-changing thermochromic or photochromic inks
Thermochromic or photochromic inks are based on metal pigments whose colours vary in
response to heat and/or light variation. As of now, this type of marking is mostly used to
print money. There are different types of inks used such as UV, infrared, magnetic and
optical variable inks.
Phosphorescent inks are either organic pigments that do not last long (Organophosphorus
compounds) or mineral pigments that last longer, but are less effective (zinc sulphates,
cadmium, strontium, calcium, etc.). They are used, for example, in the photoluminescent
threads used to bind passports or in the fibers incorporated beforehand in the paper paste
used to produce fiduciary documents.

Thermal inkjet coding on secondary packaging
A compact printing block with ink cartridges that enables automatic inkjet coding on the
fly on packaging in order to code cardboard packaging (lot, product code, barcodes).

Digital printing
Digital technology has made it possible to apply reliable techniques that were previously
only used for printing in the fiduciary business to product packaging, especially to protect
documents against counterfeiting.
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5. Traceability and the Environment
5.1 Introduction
The means/markings described in chapter 4 are used to guarantee traceability.
Their usage must be part of an environmentally-friendly approach to design that takes into
consideration the recyclability of the packaging. Recycling aims at collecting the material forming
the packaging in order to reuse it later on. Recyclability implies not only that the packaging can
be sorted, but also that the material composing the packaging can be easily collected.
5.2. Ground rules for optimising recyclability
To ensure that the packaging can still be recycled, the marking process must follow certain
ground rules, among which the following three are essential:
5.2.1. Reduce the association of “contaminating” elements and matter to the
main material in the packaging
In theory, trackers affixed to the packaging should not make it more “complex”, for fear that
recyclability be reduced. This is why watermarks, which mark the surface of the paper/cardboard
by pressure without inking or adding other materials, represent a tracing method that has no
impact on the recycling process of the packaging.
Conversely, other trackers require materials differing from the packaging itself, which can restrict
or hinder some recycling processes.
For instance, the use of metals can potentially have a heavy impact on sorting and recycling,
most notably in the following instances:
 when it comes to glass packaging management because of disturbances induced in glass
furnaces: the introduction of ‘contaminating elements’ (be they organic or metallic, etc.)
in the furnaces causes the final cullet to change colour;
 the PET recycling industry: metal, whatever its shape, disturbs the PET recycling process,
because it has an impact at different steps of the process:
o during the sorting process: optical sorters detect metals that cause disturbance in the
recycling process. As a consequence, the packaging containing metal is removed;
o during the recycling process itself: as their density is often higher than 1, metal
particles cannot be separated using the PET flotation process, as PET has a density higher
than 1. They are consequently collected with PET for recycling.
5.2.2. Encouraging the separation and elimination of the tracer
The removal of the marking depends on:
 the ink type, the quantity used and the degree to which it can be eliminated, especially when
the packaging is directly printed upon and then becomes the tracer itself.
These parameters, which determine the choice of tracer, can have an impact on:
- the quality of recyclables
Some inks, notably the UV inks used in thermochromic and photochromic markers, require ink
adhesion treatment to improve the ink adhesion to the support. When it comes to recycling
paper/cardboard, this means that de-inking the fibres can sometimes be necessary, depending
on the chosen output, and implies the total suppression of the ink in the fibres, which is difficult
to achieve with this type of ink.
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The recycling processes of plastic packaging waste tend generally to be based on the use of
washable ink to eliminate any trace of adjuvants in the recycled flakes. The pigment type, its
colour and the use of overcoats or adhesive products are criteria that need to be taken into
account to optimise recycling quality;
- protecting the integrity of recycling equipment
Being hydrosoluble, some adjuvants can, in some cases, pollute the recycling circuit and
especially wash water. To optimise packaging recyclability, the quantity of adjuvants must be
reduced as well as the use of bright colours, which wash out a lot and may taint the process
water. The two types of markings – barcodes and QR codes– cause no such phenomenon, as
less ink is used and only two colours– black and white– are used.
 The type of glue and its level of adhesiveness when the tracer is directly affixed onto the
packaging via a tag, a chip, etc. For instance, holograms on self-adhesive stickers are often
highly adhesive.
5.2.3. Abiding by health legislation (heavy metals, food contact compliance,
etc.)
Packaging is only recyclable when the waste recovery process that it undergoes leads to the
integration of the material of which it is made into a new product. Marketed products containing
recycled matter must not present health hazards. This is why regulation is strict regarding a
number of substances such as heavy metals, bisphenol A, etc. Such risk may only be completely
eliminated if the recyclable does not contain substances that are potentially harmful or toxic to
human health.
5.3 Tools and guidelines
To fulfil these objectives, tools have been designed and made available to professionals working
in packaging manufacturing and conditioning who want guidance as to the choice of materials.
Some of the tools are:
 The TREE software (Packaging recyclability test): http://tree.ecoemballages.fr designed
by Eco-Emballages. It makes it possible to assess the recyclability of domestic packaging
and offers alternatives regarding design if a disturbance is identified in the recycling
process.
 The guidebook published by Revipac and Eco-Emballages on the ‘Recyclage et la
recyclabilité des emballages ménagers papier-carton usagés’ (Recycling and recyclability
of used paper/cardboard domestic packaging)
Two expert committees are also working to improve domestic packaging recyclability by
explaining to companies the degree to which their packaging can be recycled and sharing their
technical knowledge, by way of best practice guidelines.
 Le Comité Technique pour le Recyclage des Emballages Plastiques (COTREP) (Technical
Committee for Plastic Packaging Recycling): http://www.cotrep.fr
 Le Comité d’Evaluation de la Recyclabilité de Emballages papier-Carton (CEREC) (Review
Committee for Paper-Cardboard Packaging Recycling): http://www.cerec-emballages.fr
French Packaging Council – All Rights Reserved – March 2015
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6.
Some Examples of Traceability
6.1 Packaging Traceability
This sub-chapter focuses on packaging traceability. It traces information regarding the packaging
itself (origin of the material, packaging life cycle, etc.).
The examples below, although far from complete, allow stakeholders to:
- identify the origin of the raw materials used in the packaging,
- trace the life of the packaging itself,
- manage packaging stocks and flows.
6.1.1 Origin of Wood Used to Make Oak Barrels in Viticulture
13
Oak barrels in viticulture are an example of packaging.
Many viticulturists use oak barrels to turn grapes into wine. They want to be able to determine
the origin of the oak with certainty.
Therefore, in order to meet the need for to be able to trace the material used to make this oak
packaging, INRA Bordeaux-Aquitaine has developed two genetic marker kits that can identify the
origin and species of the oak.
Coopers will thus be able to verify and certify the conformity of the batch of oak used to make
their barrels.
The Technical Institute FCBA (Forestry, Cellulose, Construction Timber and Furniture) is
responsible for transferring this technology to coopers and other stakeholders in the industry.
6.1.2 Reusable Cardboard Pallet Management by DS SMITH14
OTC-KAYPAL®15 MR concentrates its research and development projects on innovative ideas.
The “service” component associated with this packaging is the Open Tracing Container function.
The goal is to establish a unitary traceability model for this packaging.
The following questions regarding the life cycles of these cardboard pallets should be answered:
 Where are the pallets broken or lost?
 Where are they best handled?
 Where do they function quickly or more slowly?
 Where are they available for collection?
 Where is the sleeping stock?
 How often are they used and how long is their operating life?
 Where do they disappear?
 What is their storage time at each site?
The implemented solution is multi-partner:
 Implementing Electronic Product Code (EPC) standards in an open loop.
 Moving information capture and transmission in “quasi-real time” to strategic points of
the supply chain using adapted RFID technology.
 Storing captured information in EPCIS traceability databases.
 Developing “Professional Web Service” applications based on standards as a real
support to an innovative business model.
13
14
15
Réussir Vigne – Novembre 2014
Source : DS SMITH et GS1
Open Tracing Container
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Aims:




Significantly improve the traceability of flows of reusable containers and their contents in an
open loop.
Act to limit the environmental footprint of goods transport through optimisation and
improved performance.
Facilitate decision-making concerning investments in new generation reusable containers by
proving their reliability (management, traceability, standards, web services, etc.).
Encourage the development of new business models in order to advance the mutualisation of
logistic and transport resources and the development of multi-support solutions in a
competitive and interoperable multi-stakeholder framework.
Thus, packaging itself can be traced in order to improve economic and environmental efficiency,
at the same time as creating value. It is possible to follow the logistic route and the life cycle of
the packaging, which allows planning of its value chain: manufacture, transportation, storage,
repair, re-use, etc.
6.1.3 Packaging in contact with foodstuff
Packaging that is intended to come into contact with foodstuff is governed by European
Regulation no. 1935/2004 that aims “to ensure the effective functioning of the internal market in
relation to the placing on the market in the Community of materials and articles intended to
come into contact directly or indirectly with foodstuff, whilst providing the basis for securing a
high level of protection of human health and the interests of consumers.”
This Regulation introduces in article 17 a traceability requirement for materials and articles that
are intended to come into contact with foodstuff, namely:
1. The traceability of materials and articles shall be ensured at all stages in order to
facilitate control, the recall of defective products, consumer information and the
attribution of responsibility.
2. With due regard to technological feasibility, business operators shall have in place
systems and procedures to allow identification of the businesses from which and to which
materials or articles and, where appropriate, substances or products covered by this
Regulation and its implementing measures used in their manufacture are supplied. That
information shall be made available to the competent authorities on demand.
3. The materials and articles which are placed on the market in the Community shall be
identifiable by an appropriate system which allows their traceability by means of labelling
or relevant documentation or information.
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6.2 Product Traceability by the packaging
In this sub-chapter, packaging provides information about its contents. The examples below are
not complete, but they illustrate the field of possibilities for tracing the life of a product.
6.2.1 All Products
Material finger printing 16: a means of securing traceability data.
It would be highly unlikely to find nowadays a product on which no date of production, batch
number or some sort of bar code would appear.
Alphanumeric codes, data matrix or even a two-out-of-five code - there are numerous ways to
incorporate all sorts of information, either thanks to size or through connection to a database.
The product and its indications therefore need to be printed on the production line or the
packaging line, and then read before dispatch and again in the distribution channel, before the
product is sold. There could also possibly be a link with the client, the final consumer.
This code will therefore be vital for reasons of public health, warranty and customer care. If the
code ever disappears or is falsified or reproduced on any products, traceability stops.
Consequently, it is indispensable to protect traceability data and, where possible, to capture it in
unitary authenticators. This concept will allow data to be secured, but also conserved, in the
event that it disappears.
The principle is simple and recent. It is similar to digital fingerprinting, except that there is the
question of primary or secondary packaging and their products. Thus, the material fingerprint of
a product and/or its packaging must be taken and paired with its clear identifier.
Process:
A simple vision system, in other words a camera, is needed in the production, printing or
packaging line. This camera, that can detect predetermined areas when a product to be
registered passes in front of its field, immediately processes the detected markers in random
alphanumeric codes that will be saved in a database.
Beforehand, a code printed on a product (its identifier) will be read by the same system and will
be paired with what is known as the material code. The visible data and the invisible data
generated by the system become one. The unitary authenticator is thus created and saved in the
database. The significant advantage is that it cannot be falsified, deleted, copied, imitated or reproduced, as it is immaterial. Traceability is thus protected and, except in the event of the
destruction of the product or its packaging, the code can be read anonymously, without the
person overseeing the proofreading having any knowledge of the location of the code.
When the material code is read, all of the paired data will be revealed.
For a case or a cardboard box, for example, material fingerprinting can be done at the printer or
directly at the business that has put in place the system (the cases are thus delivered by the
printer and re-dispatched after coding at the industrial user). These options depend on the
required level of confidentiality. In fact, manufactures now have the possibility of an immaterial
system, without consumables or zone identification. They can thus choose a completely secret
process.
16
Concept Signoptic: Source Arjowiggins security
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Advantages of material fingerprinting:
• It is impossible to falsify, imitate or re-produce the code: the signature is completely unique
and can only be located by means of the registered product.
• The coding is invisible, since it does not materially exist: the protection cannot be questioned;
nothing is added to the product.
• Authentication cannot be doubted. There is no human interpretation.
• Its resistance to fraud is incomparable. Even in the case of identification zones, it is necessary
to damage the product to the extent that it can no longer be sold.
• In the event that printed visible codes disappear, all information can be found thanks to
technology.
• The code is very light: 1 million codes = 1GB.
• All sorts of computer data can be paired.
• Independent readers that are connected to Wi-Fi or 3G and have geolocation and timestamp
controls are available. They can also contain the database.
• A simple add-on can also be added to a smartphone onto which the application has been
downloaded.
6.2.2 Food Products
Foodstuff is governed, among others, by Regulation no. 178/2002 that determines the general
principles of food legislation and notably a general traceability requirement (article 18). In fact, in
recital 28, the Regulation states, “it is […] necessary to establish a comprehensive system of
traceability within food and feed businesses so that targeted and accurate withdrawals can be
undertaken or information given to consumers or control officials, thereby avoiding the potential
for unnecessary wider disruption in the event of food safety problems.”
Amongst the obligations set out by article 18 of this Regulation is the obligation to implement
labelling or identification procedures for commercialised products to allow and facilitate
traceability.
Directive 2011/91 clarifies the identification conditions for batch numbers, stating that the batch
number has to appear on the pre-packaging or on a label attached thereto in the case of
pre-packaged food products.
The indication has to be easily visible, clearly legible and indelible. Thus, pre-packaged foodstuff
is identified by a batch number. The latter is indispensable for traceability, and the
packaging is therefore a source of information.
Packaging does not only convey traceability in the strictest sense. It also provides other
information required by European regulation (particularly Regulation (EU) no. 1169/2011). The
packaging gives information in relation to traceability, such as the name or registered name
and the address of the person liable.
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6.2.3 Cosmetic Products17
Cosmetic products in particular are governed by cosmetic Regulation no. 1223/2009/EC18 . The
following recommendations can be found in the preamble to this Regulation:
(4) This Regulation comprehensively harmonises the rules in the Community in order to achieve
an internal market for cosmetic products while ensuring a high level of protec¬tion of human
health.
(12) Ensuring traceability of a cosmetic product throughout the whole supply chain helps to make
market surveillance simpler and more efficient. An efficient traceability system facilitates market
surveillance authorities’ task of tracing economic operators.
In article 19 of this Regulation, packaging19 is clearly identified as a means of
information in relation to traceability. For example:
•
Name or registered name and address of the person liable
•
Country of origin of cosmetic products imported into the EU
•
Date of minimum durability
•
Information concerning particular precautions to be observed in use (for example, a
warning on toothpaste: “contains sodium fluoride”)
•
The manufacturing batch number or the reference number identifying the
cosmetic product. It can guarantee identification of a batch of cosmetic products throughout
the supply chain, particularly in the case of a recall.
•
A list of ingredients (INCI)
The Fédération des Entreprises de la Beauté (FEBEA)20 has published a "best practices" guide for
labelling.
The required information must appear on the labels of the container and packaging of every
cosmetic product. The list of ingredients may only appear on the packaging.
FEBEA, ECR France and GS1 France have moreover published a “Logistics Best Practices Guide
21
for Commercial Shipments to Warehouses” that confirms that packaging constitutes an integral
part of the logistic flow of cosmetic products and carries information that makes the supply chain
more fluid and facilitates any possible recalls.
Moreover, packaging is a tool with which to combat counterfeiting thanks to the
following measures:
•
Printing a unique code (fingerprint) on each product: if the same barcode appears
twice or more, the products are counterfeits;
•
Printing a manufacturing number on all of the products: printing the date of
manufacture in letters and numbers on the case and the primary container.
17
Source: Fédération des entreprises de la beauté (FEBEA)
Regulation no. 1223/2009/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 November 2009 on
cosmetic products
19
Two types of packaging:
 The container (also referred to as the primary packaging or the interior packaging) is the
packaging that is intended to come into contact with the product;
 The packaging (also referred to as the secondary packaging or the exterior packaging) is the
packaging that is intended to contain one or more containers, including protective materials, where
appropriate.
20
A Practical Guide to Cosmetic Product Labelling – Compliancy with Cosmetics Regulation (October 2012).
Available (French only):www.febea.fr
21
http://www.publications.gs1.fr/Publications/Parfumerie-Selective-bonnes-pratiques-des-flux-marchandssur-entrepots
18
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6.2.4 Pharmaceutical Products22
The packaging of pharmaceutical products is a guarantee of the quality, traceability and
safety, security (one of the performance criteria of European Standard EN 13428) as well as of
the integrity of its contents.
The packaging does not only include the packaging of the pharmaceutical form that is in
immediate contact with the medicine (primary packaging), but also the exterior packaging
(secondary packaging) that contains the bottle, sachet, tube or (blister) pack where the product,
its instructions and possibly its administration device are found.
It should be made clear here that packaging, just like the results of clinical studies, toxicology
and pharmacology studies and manufacturing and control processes studies, is part of the
marketing authorisation application dossier (AMM) that is submitted to the health
authorities. It is key to guaranteeing the authenticity and traceability of the medicine.
The following obligatory indications must appear on the packaging:
• Name (INN23 + brand name or name of marketing authorisation holder)
• Dose (composition of the active ingredients per dosage unit)
• Pharmaceutical form
• Method of administration
• Batch number
• Expiry date
• Special storage precautions.
Moreover, falsifying drugs can lead to serious consequences for the health of anyone who is
misled. It should be recalled that drug fraud has accompanied the growth of Internet shopping:
according to the WHO24 , almost 50% of falsified medicines are bought on the Internet.
Counterfeiting can affect both brand and generic drugs.
The legal pharmaceutical supply and distribution channel particularly limits the risk of falsification
in France.
Directive25 2011/62/EU defines falsified medicine as medicine that falsely represents:
• Its identity, including its packaging and labelling, its name or its composition as regards to
any of its ingredients, including excipients and the strength of those ingredients,
• Its source, including its manufacturer, its country of manufacturing, its country of origin
or its marketing authorisation holder,
• Its history, including records and documents relating to the distribution channels used.
It provides for the implementation of new provisions for securing the medicine supply chain and
packaging in order to make it more difficult to introduce falsified drugs into the legal medicine
channel, as well as much easier to detect any such introduction.
22
Source: French Pharmaceutical Industry Association (LEEM)
International Non-proprietary Name of principal ingredient
24
Bulletin of the World Health Organisation, “Growing threat from counterfeit medicines”, volume 88,
number 4, April 2010, 241-320. Available: http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/4/10-020410/en/
25
Directive 2011/65/EU of the European Parliament and the European Council of 8 June 2011 amending
Directive 2001/83/EC on the Community code relating to medicinal products for human use, as regards the
prevention of the entry into the legal supply chain of falsified medicinal products.
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23
Packaging is thus the first support for pharmaceutical products traceability, and
contributes to patient trust:
•
•
•
It carries important information for the patient concerning storage and usage of the
product.
It helps combat falsification while generalising the integration of safety systems
(holograms, inviolability systems, indicators for cutting, etc.).
From 2018 onwards, it will guarantee that the fight against falsification is more effective,
as the exterior packaging of medicines will be required to carry serialised 2D codes (in
accordance with the above Regulation).
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6.2.5 Wine Products
Wine with a unique code carried by the packaging (security chip)
For example, the Bordeaux Wines Council (CIVB)26 wants to guarantee throughout the logistic
chain that the product in the bottle conforms to the expectations of the consumer.
The packaging bottle is the means of traceability currently being investigated by the CIVB
and its partners.
Challenges:
In the face of growing counterfeiting, particularly in Asia, the CIVB wants to protect all 65
appellations of Bordeaux wine by affixing an obligatory guarantee seal to the 700 million bottles
that are produced every year.
“It is therefore necessary to add new means of authentication to the containers of Bordeaux
wines and particularly to bottles. These means have to be a real guarantee in the face of
counterfeiting, which is particularly high in some markets. The deployment of an insufficiently
effective solution would be dramatic. The consumer would associate an authenticator that is
supposed to be reliable, but is actually false, with a substandard or fake wine that they believe to
be authentic.” 27
Obligation to protect:
The CIVB’s notes indicate how the system would be managed: “All containers of Bordeaux Wine
that are put on the market will have to carry a seal of guarantee, subject to current tender
offers.
[…] Economic criteria will influence the choice of supplier, although they should not be
detrimental to the quality of the solution, the objective of which will be to guarantee strong
authentication.”
Thus, these are the principal technical solutions that should be implemented for real secure
traceability of bottles. European legislation has intended them for a long time.
General outline of the solution:
“A unique and random serial number (identifier), created by the CIVB, is associated with each
bottle. This code is carried by a seal of guarantee on which appears authenticating elements that
can be verified by the consumer, players in the supply chain or control authorities according what
they are authorised to do, what they know how to do and what the necessary tools are. […]
The solution will have to allow the identification, authentication and traceability of all
Bordeaux wine bottles” […].
26
Bordeaux Wines Council (Comité interprofessionnel des vins de Bordeaux)
Source: “Contre-façon Riposte” website, Philippe Collier on Jean Belaube, administrative director of the
Bordeaux Wines Council, October 2014
27
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7. Appendices
7.1 Definitions
Definition of Packaging
Packaging28 is defined as any product made of any materials of any nature for the containment,
protection, handling and delivery of goods, from the producer to the consumer or user. “Nonreturnable” items used for the same purposes should also be considered to constitute packaging.
Packaging29 consists only of:
1° Sales packaging or primary packaging (I), i.e. packaging conceived so as to constitute a
sales unit for the final user or consumer at the point of purchase;
2° Grouped packaging or secondary packaging (II), i.e. packaging conceived so as to
constitute at the point of purchase a grouping of a certain number of sales units, whether the
latter is sold as such to the final user or consumer or whether it serves only as a means to
replenish the displays at the point of sale. It can be removed from the product that it contains or
protects without affecting its characteristics;
3° Transport packaging or tertiary packaging (III), i.e. packaging conceived so as to
facilitate handling and transportation of a number of sales units or grouped packaging in order to
prevent physical handling and transport damage. Transport packaging does not include road, rail,
river, sea or air containers.
7.2 Main regulatory texts (to learn more)
European regulation
Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28
January 2002 laying down the general principles and requirements of food law,
establishing the European Food Safety Authority and laying down procedures in
matters of food safety
“Article 1: Aim and scope
1. This Regulation provides the basis for the assurance of a high level of protection of human
health and consumers' interest in relation to food, taking into account in particular the
diversity in the supply of food including traditional products, whilst ensuring the effective
functioning of the internal market.
It establishes common principles and responsibilities, the means to provide a strong science
base, efficient organisational arrangements and procedures to underpin decision-making in
matters of food and feed safety.
2. […] this Regulation lays down the general principles governing food and feed in general, and
food and feed safety in particular, at Community
and national level.
It establishes the European Food Safety Authority.
It lays down procedures for matters with a direct or indirect impact on food and feed safety.
28
29
Environmental Code (Book V, Title IV, Chapter III, section 5, Article R543-43)
Directive no. 94/62/EC on packaging and packaging waste
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3. This Regulation shall apply to all stages of production, processing and distribution of
food and feed. It shall not apply to primary production for private domestic use or to the
domestic preparation, handling or storage of food for private domestic consumption.”
It is therefore necessary to establish a comprehensive system of traceability within
food and feed businesses so that targeted and accurate withdrawals can be
undertaken or information given to consumers or control officials, thereby avoiding
the potential for unnecessary wider disruption in the event of food safety problems.
It is necessary to ensure that a food or feed business including an importer can identify at
least the business from which the food, feed, animal or substance that may be incorporated
into a food or feed has been supplied, to ensure that on investigation, traceability can be assured
at all stages.
“Article 13: International standards
Without prejudice to their rights and obligations, the Community and the Member States shall:
(a) contribute to the development of international technical standards for food and feed and
sanitary and phytosanitary standards;
(b) promote the coordination of work on food and feed standards undertaken by international
governmental and nongovernmental organisations;
(c) contribute, where relevant and appropriate, to the development of agreements on recognition
of the equivalence of specific food and feed-related measures;
(d) give particular attention to the special development, financial and trade needs of developing
countries, with a view to ensuring that international standards do not create unnecessary
obstacles to exports from developing countries;
(e) promote consistency between international technical standards and food law while ensuring
that the high level of protection adopted in the Community is not reduced.”
“Article 14: Food safety requirements
1. Food shall not be placed on the market if it is unsafe […]
6. Where any food which is unsafe is part of a batch, lot or consignment of food of the same
class or description, it shall be presumed that all the food in that batch, lot or consignment
is also unsafe, unless following a detailed assessment there is no evidence that the rest of the
batch, lot or consignment is unsafe. »
“Article 17: Responsibilities
Food and feed business operators at all stages of production, processing and distribution
within the businesses under their control shall ensure that foods or feeds satisfy the
requirements of food law which are relevant to their activities and shall verify that such
requirements are met”.[…]
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“Article 18: Traceability
1. The traceability of food, feed, food-producing animals, and any other substance intended to
be, or expected to be, incorporated into a food or feed shall be established at all stages of
production, processing and distribution.
2. Food and feed business operators shall be able to identify any person from whom they
have been supplied with a food, a feed, a food-producing animal, or any substance intended
to be, or expected to be, incorporated into a food or feed. To this end, such operators shall have
in place systems and procedures which allow for this information to be made available to the
competent authorities on demand.
3. Food and feed business operators shall have in place systems and procedures to identify the
other businesses to which their products have been supplied. This information shall be
made available to the competent authorities on demand.
4. Food or feed which is placed on the market or is likely to be placed on the market in the
Community shall be adequately labelled or identified to facilitate its traceability,
through relevant documentation or information in accordance with the relevant
requirements of more specific provisions”. […]
“Article 19: Responsibilities for food: food business operators
1. If a food business operator considers or has reason to believe that a food which it has
imported, produced, processed, manufactured or distributed is not in compliance with the food
safety requirements, it shall immediately initiate procedures to withdraw the food in
question from the market where the food has left the immediate control of that initial food
business operator and inform the competent authorities thereof.
Where the product may have reached the consumer, the operator shall effectively and accurately
inform the consumers of the reason for its withdrawal, and if necessary, recall from
consumers products already supplied to them when other measures are not sufficient to
achieve a high level of health protection.
2. A food business operator responsible for retail or distribution activities which do not
affect the packaging, labelling, safety or integrity of the food shall, within the limits of its
respective activities, initiate procedures to withdraw from the market products not in
compliance with the food-safety requirements and shall participate in contributing to the safety of
the food by passing on relevant information necessary to trace a food, cooperating in
the action taken by producers, processors, manufacturers and/or the competent authorities.
3. A food business operator shall immediately inform the competent authorities if it
considers or has reason to believe that a food which it has placed on the market may be
injurious to human health. Operators shall inform the competent authorities of the action
taken to prevent risks to the final consumer and shall not prevent or discourage any person from
cooperating, in accordance with national law and legal practice, with the competent authorities,
where this may prevent, reduce or eliminate a risk arising from a food.
4. Food business operators shall collaborate with the competent authorities on action taken to
avoid or reduce risks posed by a food which they supply or have supplied.”
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DIRECTIVE 2001/95/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 3
December 2001 on general product safety
Scope:
It is […] necessary to establish at Community level a general safety requirement for any product
placed on the market, or otherwise supplied or made available to consumers, intended for
consumers, or likely to be used by consumers under reasonably foreseeable conditions even if
not intended for them. In all these cases the products under consideration can pose risks for the
health and safety of consumers which must be prevented.
“Article 3 : Producers shall be obliged to place only safe products on the market.” […]
Article 5 :
1. […] Within the limits of their respective activities, producers shall provide consumers with the
relevant information to enable them to assess the risks inherent in a product throughout the
normal or reasonably foreseeable period of its use, where such risks are not immediately obvious
without adequate warnings, and to take precautions against those risks.
The presence of warnings does not exempt any person from compliance with the other
requirements laid down in this Directive. Within the limits of their respective activities, producers
shall adopt measures commensurate with the characteristics of the products which they supply,
enabling them to:
a) be informed of risks which these products might pose;
b) choose to take appropriate action including, if necessary to avoid these risks, withdrawal
from the market, adequately and effectively warning consumers or recall from consumers.
The measures referred to in the third subparagraph shall include, for example:
a) an indication, by means of the product or its packaging, of the identity and details of the
producer and the product reference or, where applicable, the batch of products to which it
belongs, except where not to give such indication is justified and
b) in all cases where appropriate, the carrying out of sample testing of marketed products,
investigating and, if necessary, keeping a register of complaints and keeping distributors
informed of such monitoring.[…]
2. Distributors shall be required to act with due care to help to ensure compliance with the
applicable safety requirements, in particular by not supplying products which they know or
should have presumed, on the basis of the information in their possession and as professionals,
do not comply with those requirements. Moreover, within the limits of their respective activities,
they shall participate in monitoring the safety of products placed on the market, especially by
passing on information on product risks, keeping and providing the documentation necessary for
tracing the origin of products, and cooperating in the action taken by producers and competent
authorities to avoid the risks. Within the limits of their respective activities they shall take
measures enabling them to cooperate efficiently.
3. Where producers and distributors know or ought to know, on the basis of the information in
their possession and as professionals, that a product that they have placed on the market poses
risks to the consumer that are incompatible with the general safety requirement, they shall
immediately inform the competent authorities of the Member States […], giving details, in
particular, of action taken to prevent risk to the consumer. The Commission shall, in accordance
with the procedure referred to in Article 15(3), adapt the specific requirements relating to the
obligation to provide information laid down in Annex I.
4. Producers and distributors shall, within the limits of their respective activities, cooperate with
the competent authorities, at the request of the latter, on action taken to avoid the risks posed
by products which they supply or have supplied. The procedures for such cooperation,
including procedures for dialogue with the producers and distributors concerned on
issues related to product safety, shall be established by the competent authorities.
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Article 8
1. […] the competent authorities of the Member States shall be entitled to take, inter alia,
the measures in (a) and in (b) to (f) below, where appropriate:
a) for any product:
i) to organise, even after its being placed on the market as being safe, appropriate checks on its
safety properties, on an adequate scale, up to the final stage of use or consumption;
ii) to require all necessary information from the parties concerned;
iii) to take samples of products and subject them to safety checks;
b) for any product that could pose risks in certain conditions:
i) to require that it be marked with suitable, clearly worded and easily comprehensible warnings,
in the
official languages of the Member State in which the product is marketed, on the risks it may
present;
ii) to make its marketing subject to prior conditions so as to make it safe;
c) for any product that could pose risks for certain persons: to order that they be given warning
of the risk in good time and in an appropriate form, including the publication of special warnings;
d) for any product that could be dangerous: for the period needed for the various safety
evaluations, checks and controls, temporarily to ban its supply, the offer to supply it or its
display;
e) for any dangerous product: to ban its marketing and introduce the accompanying measures
required to ensure the ban is complied with;
f) for any dangerous product already on the market:
i) to order or organise its actual and immediate withdrawal, and alert consumers to
the risks it presents;
ii) to order or coordinate or, if appropriate, to organize together with producers and
distributors its recall from consumers and its destruction in suitable conditions.
2. When the competent authorities of the Member States take measures…, they shall act in
accordance… in such a way as to implement the measures in a manner proportional to the
seriousness of the risk, and taking due account of the precautionary principle. In this
context, they shall encourage and promote voluntary action by producers and distributors, in
accordance with the obligations incumbent on them under this Directive… including where
applicable by the development of codes of good practice.
If necessary, they shall organise or order the measures provided […] if the action
undertaken by the producers and distributors in fulfilment of their obligations is
unsatisfactory or insufficient. Recall shall take place as a last resort. It may be effected
within the framework of codes of good practice on the matter in the Member State concerned,
where such codes exist.
3. In particular, the competent authorities shall have the power to take the necessary action to
apply with due dispatch appropriate measures… in the case of products posing a serious risk.
These circumstances shall be determined by the Member States…
4. The measures to be taken by the competent authorities under this Article shall be addressed,
as appropriate, to:
a) the producer;
b) within the limits of their respective activities, distributors and in particular the party
responsible for the first stage of distribution on the national market;
c) any other person, where necessary, with a view to cooperation in action taken to avoid risks
arising from a product.
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Consumer Code in France
Article L.214-1 al. 9
Article R.112-7. The labels and labelling methods used must not be such as to give rise to
confusion in the mind of the purchaser or the consumer, particularly as to the characteristics of
the foodstuff and, specifically, as to its nature, identity, properties, composition, quantity,
durability, method of conservation, origin or provenance, method of manufacture or production
[…].
Article R.112-9. Without prejudice to the provisions relative to metrological control, the
labelling of pre-packaged food products, under the conditions and subject to the derogations
provided by this chapter, shall include the following compulsory mentions: 1. The trade name; 2.
A list of ingredients; 3. The quantity of certain ingredients or categories of ingredients, as
specified in articles R. 112-117 and R. 112-117-1; 4. The net quantity; 5. The date of minimum
durability or, in the case of foodstuff which is microbiologically perishable, the use-by date, as
well as an indication of the special conditions of preservation; 6. The name or company name
and address of the manufacturer or the packer or a supplier established within the European
Community; 7. The batch number; 8. The place of origin or source, whenever the omission of
such information is likely to create confusion in the mind of the buyer concerning the real origin
or source of the foodstuff; 9. The instructions for use, whenever they are necessary for
appropriate use of the foodstuff and, where applicable, the special conditions for use.
Essential Requirements – Article R. 543-44 of the Environmental Code
Packaging referred to in article R. 543-42 has to meet the essential requirements defined below:
1° Requirements specific to the manufacturing and composition of packaging:
a) Packaging shall be designed and manufactured so as to limit its volume and mass to the
minimum required to maintain the necessary level of safety, hygiene and acceptance.
b) Packaging shall be designed, produced and commercialised so as to permit its re-use or
recovery, including its preparation for re-use or recycling, and to minimise its impact on the
environment when packaging waste or residues from packaging waste management operations
are disposed of.
c) Packaging shall be manufactured so as to minimise the presence of noxious and other
hazardous substances and materials in the packaging material with regard to emissions, ash or
leachate that result from the incineration or storage of packaging or from waste management
operations.
2° Requirements specific to the re-usable or recoverable nature of packaging:
a) Re-usable packaging must simultaneously meet the following requirements:
-the physical properties and characteristics of the packaging shall enable a number of trips or
rotations in normally predictable conditions of use;
-it must be possible to process the used packaging for new use without contravening existing
health and safety requirements for the workforce;
-the requirements specific to recoverable packaging when the packaging is no longer re-used and
thus becomes waste must be met.
b) Recoverable packaging shall be designed and manufactured so as to enable at least one of the
following forms of recovery:
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-Preparation for re-use: it must be possible to process waste packaging for new use without
contravening existing health and safety requirements for the workforce;
-Material recycling:
It must be possible to recycle a certain percentage by weight of the used materials into the
manufacture of marketable products, in compliance with current standards in the European
Community. This percentage can vary, depending on the type of material of which the packaging
is composed.
- Energy recovery:
Packaging waste processed for the purpose of energy recovery shall have a minimum inferior
calorific value to allow optimisation of energy recovery.
- Composting:
It must be possible to process the biodegradable nature of packaging for the purpose of
composting without hindering separate collection or the composting process or activity into which
it is introduced.
- Biodegradable packaging:
Biodegradable packaging waste shall be of such a nature that it is capable of undergoing
physical, chemical, thermal or biological decomposition such that most of the finished compost
ultimately decomposes into carbon dioxide, biomass and water.
7.3
Bibliography

‘Enquête: Traçabilité alimentaire: en toute transparence?’, Points de vente, no. 1132,
March 2013. (Survey: Food Products Traceability: Is It Transparent?’)

‘Quand la Chine s'empoisonnera’, Courrier international, November 2011.(‘When China
Poisons Itself’)

‘La traçabilité, Quelles limites?’, Bulletin de l'ILEC, October 2010.(Traceability: Are There
Limits?’)

‘Sécurité: un consommateur sous haute protection’, Emballages Magazine, May
2010.(‘Safety: Consumers Under High Protection’)

‘Traçabilité, guide pratique pour l’agriculture et l’industrie alimentaire’, ACTIA, 2007.
('Traceability, a Practical Guide for Agriculture and the Food Industry’)

‘Sécurité consommateur: Qualité, traçabilité, gestion de crise’, ECR, April 2004.(‘Consumer
Safety: Quality, Traceability and Crisis Management’)

French Consumer Code and French Public Health Code

http://tree.ecoemballages.fr
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30
8. Acknowledgements
With thanks to members of the working group and contributors
LAWYER AT THE COURT OF APPEAL OF PARIS
LAWYER AT THE COURT OF APPEAL OF PARIS
ARJOWIGGINS SECURITY
CARREFOUR
CARTON ONDULE DE FRANCE
CENTRE TECHNIQUE DU PAPIER
CLUB BIOPLASTIQUES
CNE
CNE
CNE
DSSMITH
DSSMITH
DSSMITH
ECO-EMBALLAGES
FEBEA
FEBEA
FEDERATION DE LA PLASTURGIE ET DES COMPOSITES
FROMAGERIES BEL
FROMAGERIES BEL
GS1
GS1 (doctoral student at the AgroParisTech Foundation)
LEEM
LEEM
LEEM
L'OCCITANE
SYSTEME U
E. BON
S. MARTIN
H. CARN
B. GARNIER
K. DESBOUIS
D. OTTENIO
F. NYS
M. BRICOUT
M. FONTAINE
B. SIRI
G. MATHIEU
N. LE LAY
M. BULTELLE
M. PAILLEUX
N. DELANGLE
V. D’ENFERT
M. MADEC
P. BRAUN
K. CZYZOWICZ
S. CREN
G. PETIT
D. CAROFF
A. CARPENTIER
C. MARECHAL
P. DE BRUGIERE
J.M. POINTET
All of our publications are available on our website:
www.conseil-emballage.org
For more information, please contact:
Bruno Siri, General Manager, or Maryse Bricout
The French Packaging Council
Telephone: +33 (0)1 53 64 80 30
E-mail: [email protected]
French Packaging Council – All Rights Reserved – March 2015
31
Board of Directors
Michel Fontaine, President
Georges Robin, Honorary President
Noël Mangin, REVIPAC, Treasurer
Evangeline Baeyens, ILEC
Jacques Bordat, CSVMF
Eric Brac de la Perrière, ECO-EMBALLAGES
François Carlier, CLCV
Jacques Creyssel, FCD
Olivier Draullette, CLIFE
Françoise Gérardi, ELIPSO
Philippe Joguet, FCD
Guy Lagonotte, Familles de France
Jan Le Moux, ECO-EMBALLAGES
Arnaud Rolland, COCA-COLA
Fabrice Peltier, INDP
Bruno Siri, General Manager
The CNE's Nine Colleges
Packaging material manufacturers,
Packaging manufacturers,
Companies in the consumer goods sector and their suppliers,
Retail companies,
Companies authorised by the public authorities to organise the collection and recovery of
packaging waste on the national level and operators in the sector,
Consumer associations,
Environmental protection organisations,
Local authorities,
Other federations and companies.
THE FRENCH PACKAGING COUNCIL
71 Avenue Victor Hugo – 75116 PARIS
Telephone: +33(0)153648030 – Fax: +33(0)145017516
E-mail: [email protected] – Website: http://www.conseil-emballage.org
SIRET no. 41513678700025 APE: 9499Z
French Packaging Council – All Rights Reserved – March 2015
32