How many hazardous products do you have in your home? How many products must remain inaccessible to children? Many! And these products all have safety devices that prevent children from opening them easily, medicine bottles, cleaning products and many others.
Until today, there exists no flexible packaging that meets these demands and regulations. The rule is that the packaging must be designed to make it difficult for a child of 5 years or less to open or obtain a toxic or hazardous substance, while remaining easy for adults to open. The tests are to give a child five minutes to try and open the package, then another five minutes with the instructions. If they achieve in opening it, it is a failure for that packaging.
This especially adapts to rigid packaging, which is unfortunate. It’s a shame because a package is ideal for liquids (and therefore, cleaning products), re-sealable, lighter, less cumbersome, cheaper to transport and, more sustainable than a rigid bottle in particular.
A company (Presto Products Company), has found a way to adapt flexible packaging and make it consistent with the rules stipulated by the authorities. How? They designed a zipper nearly impossible for children to open and, relatively easy for adults. The opening requires applying pressure on the element which opens and closes the pocket. In other words, it seems that the coordination required to open this package is too great for a child of five.
This is a new market opening up for flexible packaging and, there is no doubt that many opportunities will appear, as well as other means of protecting children from dangerous products, while enjoying the benefits of flexible packaging.
