Product Safety

The manufacturing of paper grades suitable for various food packaging applications (Product Safety), is on top of our agenda.

Commitment to product safety

DS Smith is committed to ensuring product safety for all our customers. Our broad expertise enables us to provide safe corrugated board grades in various food packaging applications.

This commitment is proven in our actions;

  • Actively following the regulatory initiatives to ensure compliance with the latest standards and regulations
  • Working together with our suppliers to select only safe additives and raw materials for our paper mills
  • Manufacture our paper according to Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) principles
  • Regular testing of product purity as part of our compliance procedures which are continuously updated if and when needed.

Product safety legislation

Food safety is a top priority for national authorities, and for DS Smith. This leads to a stricter regulatory environment for food packaging materials and articles.

The main EU legislation relating to materials and articles intended to come into contact with food is the framework regulation 1935/2004/EC. Containerboard paper is produced in accordance with the German BfR recommendation XXXVI. This includes requirements for raw materials and additives, as well as purity requirements for the end product. These recommendations provide a good methodology to ensure compliance with the framework regulation 1935/2004/EC.

Most of our paper products are, under normal and foreseeable conditions of use, suitable for direct contact with;

  • dry, non-fatty food
  • food types that are washed, peeled or shelled before consumption.

For direct contact with fatty and aqueous food, we recommend to use an appropriate barrier.

All our European paper mills comply with the EC regulation 2023/2006 on good manufacturing practice for materials and articles intended to come into contact with food.

DS Smith Kraft linerboard compliance

DS Smith’s Kraft linerboard, produced in Riceboro, Georgia, has no toxicity, nor is it a hazard to human health or the environment. It is in compliance with the following regulations:

  • US FDA-CFR Title 21 173-170 Components of paper and paperboard in contact with aqueous and fatty foods
  • US FDA-CFR Title 21 173-180 Components of paper and paperboard in contact with dry food
  • US FDA-CFR Title 21 173-210
  • US California Proposition 65
  • CONEG
  • TCHP
  • REACH
  • European Directive
  • CEPA
  • SVHC
  • California Toxics in Packaging Prevention Act
  • Class 1 or Class 11 ozone depleting chemicals
  • Elemental Chlorine Free (ECF) Unbleached fiber
Download the compliance letter