Why Is Child Resistant Packaging Important Today?

This is a sponsored guest post.

In 1970, the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has administered the Poison Prevention Packaging Act (PPPA) of 1970. This act requires special packaging (child-resistant and adult-friendly) for many products, especially oral prescription drugs. Child resistant packaging has been around for decades, and there haven’t been many changes ever since its introduction in 1970. But do we understand what it is, or how it works?

What is Child Resistant Packaging?

Are you familiar with those pill bottles with the screw on their cap, which requires you to press it down as you turn it? What about those blister packs which protect each individual dose? These are some examples of child resistant packaging. 

Child-resistant (C-R) packaging, or also known as special packaging, is used to minimize the risks of poisoning children through the ingestion of potentially harmful items, which include pesticides, household chemicals, prescription, and over-the-counter medications. According to the PPPA, special packaging is a type of packaging that is designed to make it significantly difficult for children below 5 years of age to obtain a harmful or toxic amount of substance contained therein in a reasonable time. It also designed to make it easy for adults to open the packaging properly. Thanks to this law, it has become impossible for children to open household containers and bottles. Even some adults are struggling to open them.

Why is Child Resistant Packaging Important Today?

Now that we have entered the age where marijuana is slowly becoming legal, the topic of child-resistant packaging comes back into focus. It isn’t just the focus today, but it’s also being reinvented. The sales for legal marijuana have been unexpectedly high, so the packaging laws have been addressed along the way.

So, while the laws vary per state, below are the general requirements of packaging legal marijuana for sale:

• Marijuana packaging must not resemble any existing packaging that will attract children, and cannot have any references to candy products like Tootsie Rolls, Gummy Bears, etc. In short, there should be no cartoons on the packaging.
• The packaging of marijuana in more and more states should be tamper-evident. A tamper-evident seal will indicate that the closure or the seal has been interfered with or removed. 
• Every legal marijuana package should be in Child Resistant Packaging. It can either be in one-time child-resistant packaging for single-serve, or continuous child-resistant packaging for multi-doses.
• Marijuana packages should be opaque (only for infused products)
• Marijuana products with multiple servings need to be re-sealable and should remain child-resistant.
• Manufacturers should not make any misleading health claims on marijuana packaging.

It would take us forever to expound each of these guidelines on marijuana packaging, but the main idea here is to make sure that children are safe from marijuana. The most important requirement is to make sure that every marijuana package must be in child-resistant packaging. This means that the marijuana package should be legally compliant to keep kids from getting into the package of, let’s say, 100mg THC cookies. The purpose of the law is to keep children safe.

What happens if children are exposed to marijuana?

Children mistake edible marijuana (brownies, gummy bears, lollipops, etc.) for regular food, and end up eating it unknowingly. Because these products contain very high amounts of marijuana, the symptoms are more severe. Small children are at higher risks based on their weight and size. In fact, many young children who have consumed marijuana edibles need to be rushed to the hospital, due to the severity of the symptoms.

C-R packaging regulations for marijuana differ from state to state, and they continue to change as the wind blows. But the reason we have these regulations in place is to keep the children safe.

Marijuana businesses need to comply with these laws. This shouldn’t be a problem since there are a lot of packaging choices available. For example, bags for marijuana are not like the plastic bags that people used before. They are barrier bags that are now thicker, opaque, and puncture-resistant. They also have minimal oxygen exchange and a high odor barrier.

Different Types of Child Resistant Packaging

Popular types of child-resistant packaging include the following:

• Flat Pouch

Cannabis grams: 1 gram

Cannabis Ounces: Dime bag

Dimensions (outside): 3.75” x 4”

Child-Resistant Zipper: Yes

• Stand Up Pouch

Cannabis grams: 3.5 grams, 7 grams, 14 grams, 28 grams

Cannabis Ounces: 1/8 ounce, ¼ ounce, ½ ounce, 1 ounce

Dimensions (outside): 3.75” x 6” x 2”, 4” x 7.25” x 2”, 5” x 8” x 2.5”, 6” x 10” x 2.5”,

Child-Resistant Zipper: Yes

• Exit Bags

Cannabis grams: N/A

Cannabis Ounces: Variable

Dimensions (outside): 12” x 9” x 4”

Child-Resistant Zipper: Yes

If you’re looking for C-R packaging, you should watch out for marijuana packaging predators. Some companies sell packaging and claim to be compliant and certified, but offer cheap, knock-off packaging. You should always check first before you commit the mistake of buying knock-off products. It may be hard to determine the best ones, especially if you’re new. That’s why we have come up with 5 things you need to consider when choosing a child resistant packaging.

5 Things to Consider When Buying Child Resistant Packaging

1. Functionality. Some patients have medical conditions that affect their dexterity. So, it’s a big factor if the packaging option isn’t only child-resistant but is also easy to open.
2. Creativity. CR packaging doesn’t have to be ugly. Let your brand shine by being creative with the packaging. The packaging is the most memorable and intimate experience any patient has with your brand (besides consumption).
3. Consistency. If your patients purchase your product, they expect a level of consistency. It may be difficult for them to adapt if you change labels, dosing, and other details.
4. Compliance. Are you sure that your packaging is child-resistant? Verify if the suppliers are indeed certified, or else you’ll land in hot water. 
5. Feedback. Marijuana C-R packaging options change daily, so you need to make sure you’re on the lookout whenever the next best solution comes out.