Traceability of products

Products must include information that makes it possible to identify the product and trace it and remove it from the market, if necessary.

Companies are responsible for the safety of the products they manufacture, import and sell. A company must know where the raw materials used in the product were procured from, where the product was acquired from, and where the products were forwarded to in the delivery chain.

The product or its packaging must display the following information:

  • The name, model and serial number of the product in accordance with commercial practice
  • Contact information of the manufacturer, commissioner or importer
  • In certain cases, the information about the production lot of the product, the production lot identifier, year of manufacture, or other information required to identify or trace the product, if necessary.

 

Product group-specific traceability requirements

Product group-specific special legislation includes separate provisions on the traceability of certain product groups.

Check the legislation for more specific requirements on a product:

  • electrical appliances
  • chemicals
  • cosmetic products
  • precious metals
  • machinery
  • personal protective equipment
  • toys
  • aerosols
  • construction products
  • rescue service equipment
  • pressure equipment 
  • fireworks, explosives
  • quipment in potentially explosive atmospheres
  • gas equipment

 

Why is the traceability information useful?

If a product is found to pose risks, the company must remove the product from sale and the consumers, and it must notify consumers about the danger. If the products do not have a production lot identifier or a similar marking, recalling a specific production lot is difficult and it may be extremely expensive.

Benefits of traceability information for the company and the consumers:

  • Enables limited recalls of specific production lots
  • Allows distributing accurate product-specific information to the consumers and the supervisory authorities
  • Improves the safety of consumers, because dangerous products can be removed from the market quickly
  • Improves the safety of companies, because defective products can be found and corrected quickly
  • Ensures that the supervisory authorities receive information
  • Allows companies to manage the material inventory and deliveries, among other things.