Lead and Phthalate Testing Under the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA)

The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) requires control of the amount of lead and phthalates in consumer products designed or intended specifically for children aged 12 and under, and lays out requirements for flammability testing. It is obligatory to test the products covered by this legal regulation. This safety standard has been widely adopted voluntarily to control the amount of lead in all products sold in the USA.

Lead is a low-cost and abundant heavy metal widely used in various products and manufacturing sectors. Lead and lead compounds are found in numerous consumer products, including paints and coatings, toys, bags, belts, shoes, jewelry and accessories.

Phthalates are high production volume chemicals used primarily as plasticizers in polyvinylchloride (PVC) and polyurethane (PU) products. There are several different types of phthalates that are used for a wide variety of consumer products, including toys, clothing, shoes, accessories, luggage, and food contact materials.

The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) places major restrictions on the potential contamination of toys and children's products by harmful substances, particularly lead and phthalates. Ultimately, consumer safety is the top concern of this law, and every precaution outlined in the law must be followed, including mandatory third-party testing requirements.

However, a material exemption list has been created to avoid unnecessary use of third-party testing for substances that are not known to contain harmful lead and banned phthalates. Accordingly, children's products manufactured or imported must not contain more than 100 parts per million (ppm) of total lead in accessible parts and components. Lead limits in paints and surface coatings are even lower (less than 90 ppm). Companies that manufacture and import children's products should have third-party testing done to verify compliance with these limits. In addition, the CPSIA prohibits the use of more than 0.1 percent of eight different phthalates for use in children's toys and child care products.

Our organization also provides lead and phthalate testing services within the scope of the consumer product safety improvement law (CPSIA), with its trained and expert staff and advanced technological equipment, among the numerous test, measurement, analysis and evaluation studies it provides for businesses in various sectors.