THE CERAMIC ARTICLES IN CONTACT WITH FOOD REGULATIONS 2006

THE CERAMIC ARTICLES IN CONTACT WITH FOOD REGULATIONS 2006

New Regulations governing the levels of migration of lead and cadmium from ceramic surfaces in contact with food are shortly to come into force, both in the
UK and throughout the EU, to replace the existing regulations.
These new Regulations are based on the long-standing BS6748 standards for Metal Release, but their scope is greatly increased. In simple terms, anyone manufacturing or importing ceramic items which are to be used to contain foodstuffs must issue a “Declaration of Compliance”, which must accompany the ware to the final point of sale (but not to the consumer), and must contain the following information:-
• The identity and address of the company which manufactured the finished ceramic article and (if applicable) the importer who imports it into the Community.
• The identity of the ceramic article.
• The date of the declaration.
• Confirmation that the ceramic article meets the relevant requirements of the Regulations.

These Regulations also encompass anyone who offers a “place on the market” for such items, which includes items given as free of charge samples and presumably custom made gifts. In order to comply with the regulations, the manufacturer, importer or person who places items on the market must maintain documentary evidence showing that the items in question meet the migration levels, appropriate to the item, as quoted in the Regulations. This will involve testing of the items by a Registered Testing Station who will issue certificates quoting the results obtained. All such certificates must be kept with the documentation and must be available for inspection at any time by the enforcing authority, who will also require traceability of results to items, and so to the Declaration of Compliance. The methods to be adopted for the testing are laid down in the Regulations, but in principle are those currently used for BS6748, so items which have already passed this test should equally pass the new test. As a final note, the Regulations are intended to cover all such items which are intended to contain foodstuffs and include tableware, cookware and storage containers, bearing in mind that different shapes require different tests. It must always be remembered that any results obtained by testing of items are only valid as long as the method and materials used are not changed. If there is a change then new documentation may have to be prepared together with new testing results.