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Packaging’s role in protecting children from choking hazards

Choking hazards are not child’s play, but can result from a child’s play and other activities, as well.

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The Consumer Product Safety Act, along with the Federal Hazardous Substances Act, include labeling regulations for toys and games, meant to protect children from choking on small parts. The regulations apply to products intended for use by children who are 12 years old or younger. The regulations acknowledge that: children who are 3 years old and younger (particularly) are prone to putting small parts in their mouths and choking as a result; and, packaging is an effective medium for communicating the hazard.

All federal regulations regarding warning labels mandate that such labels be conspicuous, a requirement that’s typically fulfilled on the principle display panel of the packaging. Such regulations further have in common format requirements i.e. an icon, a signal word, identification of the hazard, etc. Warning labeling about choking hazards, however, must employ the exact wording detailed in the regulations. The required wording varies, depending on whether the part is a ball or marble, for example. When the concern is over an otherwise unidentified part, however, the warning must have the alert icon of an exclamation point inside a triangle, followed by, WARNING: CHOKING HAZARD- Small parts. Not for children under 3 yrs.

The Consumer Product Safety Act also addresses another type of labeling, namely, tracking, meant to facilitate product traceability, essential in the event of a product recall. The labeling must be prominently displayed on the packaging and be permanent (non-removable). The labeling must present: name of manufacturer, importer, or other type of marketer; place of origin; date of manufacture; and, production information, such as lot number.

The need for tracking labeling is best appreciated through an understanding of what the regulations define as a small part, namely, anything that can pass through a test cylinder, dimensioned to simulate the throat of a 3 year-old. The small part can be: the product; an unattached component; or, an attached component that, nonetheless, can be pulled free by a child. It’s possible, therefore, for a product to carry a small-parts warnings because of either of the first two definitions, yet embody the third, unrecognized, until incidents justify a recall.

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