The Board of Directors of the Saudi Standards, Metrology and Quality Organization has approved the Technical Regulations for Paper and Cardboard.
The technical regulation applies to all paper and cardboard products, whether it is graphic paper (printing, writing, and newsprint), packaging paper, cardboard, kraft paper, paperboard, tissue, industrial paper, and paper pulp. Food-contact paper products and wallpaper products are excluded from the list. For other technical regulations, wet and scented wipes and makeup wipes are subject to the Food and Drug Authority.
According to the regulation, the supplier must comply with basic and environmental requirements to ensure the safety of the offered products. It consists in verifying the physical, chemical and environmental properties of the product such as quantitative weight, dimensions, thickness, tensile strength and elongation, folding tolerance, smoothness, absorbency, whiteness, glossiness, pressure tolerance, and color, provided that the paper is free of harmful substances, and that the paper is free stains, holes, tears, lumps, and unwanted folds, and any other visible defects while adhering to the technical requirements of the label, and providing documents to prove their fulfillment upon request of the regulatory authorities. The environmental requirements stressed that the product should be free of toxic, hazardous or carcinogenic substances and that the source of natural fibers resulted from the exploitation of forest products which are not endangered and not genetically modified, and that the products should be designed and manufactured so that they do not represent a threat to public health or the health of and the safety of users, and not to affect the environment and climate during their use and after their disposal and to ensure that the reuse or recycling of these materials and their parts is taken into account.
Chemical safety requirements clarified that the product should not contain sulfur, sulfides, free acids, chlorine and strong alkali, and that the product should be free of metallic dyes or dyes based on aluminum, silver, arsenic, barium, cadmium, cobalt, chromium, copper, mercury, manganese, nickel, lead , selenium, antimony, tin or zinc.
The regulation emphasized adherence to the explanatory data on paper and cardboard so that they meet technical requirements and standard specifications and in line with public order, public morals, and Islamic values prevailing in the Kingdom. The regulation clarified the responsibilities of the supervisory authorities within their field of competence and powers, as they verify that the products meet the specific conformity assessment procedures and the technical documents attached to the consignments.
When detecting a case of non-conformity with the product, the regulation confirmed that the relevant products should be withdrawn from warehouses and that legal measures should be taken against them. According to the regulation, the market survey authorities shall apply market survey procedures to the products offered in the markets, as well as the products stored in the warehouses of merchants and manufacturers to verify the safety of the products and their compliance with the basic requirements set forth in this technical regulation and the relevant standard specifications by taking samples of the product, whether from the market or warehouses. Suppliers (manufacturers and importers) are required to conduct the necessary tests and ensure their compliance with the requirements stipulated in this technical regulation.
54 Comments