Child resistant (CR) packaging is specifically designed to help reduce the instances of accidental poisoning in children through the ingestion of prescriptions, over-the-counter (OTC) medications, pesticides, and various other household chemicals. 

CR packaging, also referred to as “special packaging,” is required by the Poison Prevention Packaging Act (PPPA) of 1970 and regulated by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) via the Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA) and the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA).  The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for the regulation of economic poisons (i.e., pesticides and bait stations), which is also covered in the PPPA.

According to the PPPA, CR packaging must be designed to meet two requirements: the packaging must be significantly difficult for children under the age of 5 years to open, and must not be difficult for adults to open (the Act also allows accommodations to be made for the elderly and handicapped who might struggle with CR packaging).  To ensure that these requirements are met, packages must be tested in accordance with federal regulation, and when applicable, international regulation. 

In order for a package to be considered child resistant, it must be tested with children ages 42-51 months using the protocol detailed in 16 CFR 1700. Testing is performed to ensure that young children are unable to access potentially dangerous substances. Each package is tested with at least 50 children (and a maximum of 200 children) to determine the effectiveness of the package.

Child Testing 

Each test is made up of 1 to 4 panels of 50 children between the ages of 42 and 51 months.
Panels are divided into 3 groups according to age:

30% between the ages of 42 and 44 months

40% between the ages of 45 and 48 months

30% between the ages of 49 and 51 months

The number of boys and the number of girls in each group approximately 50%/50% (regulation allows for +/-10% variation).

In addition, the package must also be tested with senior adults (ages 50-70 years) to make sure it is not too difficult to use.  For this portion of testing, at least 90% of the adults tested must be able to successfully open and, if applicable, re-close the package two sequential times within the allotted test periods.

Senior Adult Testing 

100 senior adults between the ages of 50 and 70 years old is used.  

Panels are divided into 3 groups according to age:

25% between the ages of 50 and 54 years

25% between the ages of 55 and 59 years

50% between the ages of 60 and 70 years

70% of those in each age group be female, no obvious physical or mental disabilities.

Through long-standing partnerships with senior centers, daycare facilities, camps, and nursery schools throughout, we continuously refine our testing methodologies to align with evolving industry expectations while maintaining strict adherence to regulatory protocols.

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