How to check a product's markings, use conditions and test reports before you sell it
Most compliance problems are not failed tests. They are a product, a package and a report that each say something slightly different.
Three sources that must agree
- The product: what is moulded into the base or printed on it — material, symbols, capacity, model number.
- The package and instructions: what the customer is told — microwave, dishwasher, freezer, hot drinks, age range.
- The test reports: which product, which material and colour, which standard, which conditions.
If the package says 'dishwasher safe' and nothing in the reports or the specification supports it, the claim is yours to defend.
Checking the markings on the product
- Material identification moulded in, for example the resin code on the base, matches the material in the specification.
- Any food-contact symbol required for your market is present — in the EU, the glass and fork symbol, or wording to the same effect.
- Model number or batch mark is readable, so a complaint can be traced to a production lot.
- Use symbols (microwave, dishwasher, freezer) appear only where the use is actually supported for that model.
Use symbols are often treated as decoration. Treat them as claims: each one should have something in the specification or the reports behind it.
Checking the use conditions
Read the instructions as a customer would, and test each sentence against the product:
- Temperature: does 'hot drinks' or 'microwave' match the material and the model's test?
- Parts: do the instructions cover each part separately — body, lid, seal, straw, steel insert — where they behave differently?
- Cleaning: is the dishwasher instruction limited to the top rack where that matters?
- Children: if the product is for children, is the age range stated and consistent with the standards you are relying on?
Checking the test reports
| Item | What to check |
|---|---|
| Sample description | Model, material and colour match the product you are buying |
| Standard | The one your market expects, and the right version |
| Conditions | Test conditions match the use you claim on the package |
| Date and laboratory | Recent enough for your customer, from a recognised laboratory |
| Scope | Which parts were tested — a body-only report does not cover the lid or seal |
Colour matters more than buyers expect. A report on a clear sample does not automatically cover the same model in a new colour made with a different masterbatch.
Keep it together
File the approved sample, the specification, the package artwork and the reports together for each model and colour. When a retailer or an authority asks a question, the answer is in one folder rather than in four email threads.