China Upgrades Domestic Packaging Supervision Standards
August 21, 2026
Shanghai, Aug 20, 2026 — China has rolled out stricter supervision over food‑contact packaging and label printing, bringing higher technical requirements for domestic printing and packaging enterprises.
Driven by updated national food safety standards GB 7718‑2025 and supporting regulatory measures, new rules will be strictly enforced starting from December this year. The regulations set clear mandatory specifications for date coding, label readability and full‑chain traceability of pre‑packaged food. Production date and expiry date must be printed in high‑contrast fonts with specified minimum character height, eliminating blurry, easy‑to‑rub‑off coding that was common in the past国家市场监....
Printing houses need to upgrade variable‑data printing and label compliance verification workflows. QR‑code‑based digital traceability labels are encouraged, enabling batch information recording for raw materials, production and finished goods新华网. Non‑compliant print samples will face market penalties.
Industry insiders note that packaging converters should carry out internal self‑inspection ahead of the deadline. Besides domestic orders, these compliance capabilities also help factories adapt to overseas rules such as EU PPWR. Companies that fail to adjust printing processes in time risk order losses and product recalls.
