Helping you undersand soap and cosmetic regulations — in plain English.

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Label Review – A Perfect Soap Label

I was at the Wooden Boat Festival in Port Townsend, Washington, several weeks ago and picked up a simply labeled soap from the Mimsy Soap Ranch booth at the craft show. The label was perfect, with all the required elements!

It’s not too difficult to correctly label a soap or cosmetic, it just takes some attention to detail.

More Information

To learn more about the regulations covering soap and cosmetic labeling, start with the Quick Labeling FAQ and read up on the Label Basics.

If you need help, or want a side check on your labels, you can get a Label Review to get your labels on track.

Also, see the links below for books available at Amazon.

Soap and Cosmetic Labeling cover

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Comments

2 responses to “Label Review – A Perfect Soap Label”

  1. Laurie Fiesel

    Love your work! Have read fda requirements for soap labeling/marketing & am frustrated by restrictions against giving the benefits such as “only soap my customers w exema use”, or “people w allergies generally have no problem w it”, or listing the benefits known for the essential oils or oatmeal used in it.
    If “soap is just soap”, then why does the customer need to pay $5-9/bar? (And it is so much more than just soap!)
    What i read said we weren’t even allowed to list customer reviews that said any of those things.
    Is there a legal way to get around that?
    Thank you so much!

    Reply
    1. Marie Gale

      Well, people pay $5 – $9 (and sommetimes much more) for some soaps because they know it is more than “just soap” and better than the commercial options on the market. However, when it comes to marketing and what you can promote about the product you must stay with the INTENDED USE. That’s the key.

      The intended use is what YOU say is the reason for using the product and what the customer understands is the reason to use the product based on what you say about it. In order to fall into the category of “soap”, the ONLY intended use is to clean. Once you go beyond cleaning and get into the intended use of making more attractive, then the product becomes a cosmetic. If you go past that and say (or imply) that the customer should by your soap because it is intended to treat or cure eczema or something else, then it becomes an unapproved new drug.

      If you are trying to communicate to your customer that they can use the soap to treat or cure something; no, there is no way to get around it.

      You CAN say what ingredients are in the product (but not what they do). Most informed customers, especially those dealing with skin conditions, already know what ingredients to look for.

      Reply

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