MARKET ENTRY U.S. LABELING REQUIREMENTS FOR COSMETIC PRODUCTS How are cosmetic products and labels defined under the U.S. law? Cosmetics under the U.S. law are products such as skin creams, lotions, perfumes, lipsticks, fingernail polishes, eye and facial make-up preparations, shampoos, permanent waves, hair colours, toothpastes, deodorants, and any material intended for use as a component of a cosmetic product. Even raw materials used in the cosmetic products are considered as cosmetics in the U.S. law.
What mandatory information you must display in your cosmetics’ labels?
1. Identity of the Product: it entails what the product in question is, for example mascara, perfume, and so on. It is an essential piece of information to display as consumers must clearly understand what type of cosmetic product is and what it is used for. The identity of the commodity may be expressed in terms of the common or Here’s the definition: “A cosmetic is a usual name of the cosmetic, a descriptive product, except soap, intended to be name, or when the nature of the cosmetic applied to the human body for cleansing, is obvious. It may also be expressed in beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or form of an illustration. The product identity information must be displayed on the front/ altering the appearance”. principal display of the label/package. Labelling under U.S. law is defined as: “All labels and other written, printed or graphic 2. Net Contents: net content advises the consumers how much content matter on or accompanying a product”. the cosmetic product contains. Net content statements must be in terms What competent authorities and laws of weight, measure, numerical count, or you must comply with when exporting a combination of numerical count and weight or measure. Statements of net cosmetics to the U.S.? content must be on the bottom area of In order to protect U.S. consumers from the front panel in line generally parallel to deceptive and/or unsafe packaged or the base on which the package rests, and labelled cosmetic products, foreign in a type size commensurate with the size companies must comply with the following of the container. laws and authorities when exporting their 3. Ingredient Declaration: it tells the cosmetics to the U.S.: consumer what the cosmetic product • Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic is made of. Such a declaration must be (FD&C) Act contained only in cosmetic products • The Fair Packaging and Labelling intended to be sold to final consumers for (FP&L) Act their personal use. Therefore, cosmetic • Regulations published by the Food and products used by professionals at the Drug Administration (FDA) under the workplace such as hairdressers do not need to display the ingredient declaration above-mentioned laws. (unless the products are then sold to consumers at the salon).
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