What Is A Child-Resistant Package?
- Published on Tuesday, 28 January 2014
The difficult job ahead for the Colorado Medical Enforcement Division (MED).
The new rules governing the production and sale of Marijuana – both Recreational and Medical are voluminous, detailed and complex. The rules are contained in Marijuana Enforcement Division 1 CCR 212-1 and 1 CCR 212-2
Current Rules Related to the Colorado Medical Marijuana Code and Retail Marijuana Code and in the Permanent Retail and Medical Marijuana Rules.
The new rules state that all Retail and Medical Marijuana, Marijuana Product and Marijuana Concentrate must “exit the dispensary in a child resistant package”. Further, that any product intended for more than a single use or containing multiple servings shall be closable.
Retail Marijuana – Rule R 1000 Series – Labeling, Packaging and Products Safety (R 1005, 1006 and 1007)
Medical Marijuana – M 1001 – Packaging Requirements: General Requirements
The problem is perpetrated by unscrupulous marketers of these containers who represent that their products are child resistant, when in fact they are not
The rules are clear, but how to enforce the rules is more complicated. How can the MED know which packages are child resistant and which are not. How can the MED know by looking at a package in a dispensary if the standard has been met.
A recent visit to more than a dozen recreational dispensaries in the Denver area found that the confusion extends to the dispensaries. “The problem is perpetrated by unscrupulous marketers of these containers who represent that their products are child resistant, when in fact they are not”, stated Robert Lerman, President of eBottles.com, a leading online supplier of child resistant bottles and jars.
The answer to the question: “What is a child-resistant package?” is published in the Code of Federal Regulations in Title 16, Part 1700.
http://www.cpsc.gov/Business--Manufacturing/Business-Education/Business-Guidance/PPPA/
According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission:
”A child-resistant package is one that is designed or constructed to be significantly difficult for children under 5 to open or obtain a harmful amount of the contents within a reasonable time. In addition, the package must not be difficult for normal adults to use properly.
For a package to be child resistant, a total of 80 percent of the children tested … must not open the package during a full 10 minutes of testing…
To make sure that adults are able to use a child-resistant package properly, 90 percent of adults tested have up to 5 minutes, and then another minute in a second test, to open and close the package so that it is child resistant again.
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For a package to be considered to be child resistant, the manufacturer of the child resistant device submits his product to an independent testing laboratory who performs the test procedures as outlined by the CPSC with 50 children between the ages of 3 and 4 and 50 adults between the ages of 50 and 70.
If the device passes the test successfully, the testing laboratory submits the results to the CPSC and the manufacturer is able to provide his/her customers with a “Certificate of Compliance” verifying that the tests have been performed in accordance with the CPSC guidelines.
The simple answer for the dispensary owner and for the MED is to insist on receiving a copy of the “Certificate of Compliance” for all of the exit packaging they are using.
Where can I find additional information? You can obtain the regulations issued under the Poison Prevention Packaging Act, 16 C.F.R. Part 1700, from the Commission’s website at: http://www.cpsc.gov. For more information on the requirements, contact the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Office of Compliance, Washington, D.C. 20207, telephone: (301) 504-0608, e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
SOURCE: eBottles.com
The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of THCbiz.
