China issues updated industry standard QB/T 2673-2023 for labeling footwear products

SafeGuardSSoftlinesMarch 06, 2024

SG 40/24

China Updates Footwear Product Standard – QB/T 2673-2023 – Labeling for footwear products

On July 28, 2023, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) issued QB/T 2673-2023 for the labeling of footwear products. This became effective February 1, 2024m replacing the previous edition, QB/T 2673-2013.

The new standard applies to the labeling of footwear products produced or sold within the borders of the People's Republic of China.

Main Technical Changes

Revisions to QB/T 2673-2023, include:

Marking requirement of ‘Product name’
Marking requirement of ‘Materials’
Marking requirement of ‘Place of origin’
Marking requirement of ‘Enterprise name and contact information’
Marking requirement of ‘Executive standard number’
Marking requirement of ‘Quality level’
Marking elements on ‘Shoe’ and ‘Inner packaging (including hangtag)’
Marking format and requirement

Deletions include:

Marking elements of ‘Three guarantees’, ‘Production date’, ‘Color’
Marking elements on ‘Outer packaging’
Appendices A and B

Main technical requirements of QB/T 2673-2023 – Labeling for footwear products

Item	Requirement
Trademark	Not specified
Product Name	Children’s shoes: the name shall be based on the end user – e.g. children’s shoe, children’s athletic shoe Other shoes: the name shall be based on the end user, final use or function. For example, women’s casual shoe, men’s shoe, athletic shoe
Shoe size	Labeled according to GB/T 43293
Materials	The upper material shall be labeled at a minimum, and other component materials may not be labeled It shall be at least in Chinese, and it can also be labelled together with graphics or English abbreviations. Chinese labeling information shall prevail It is advisable to avoid adding accessories or reinforcements such as trademarks, bindings, trimmings, shoelaces, buckles, shoe tongues, eyelet mats or similar Labeled materials shall account for at least 80% of the upper area. The information of two or more than two main materials shall be listed on the label if no single material comes to 80%, the label sequence shall be labeled in accordance to the surface area. For example, Upper: fabric + synthetic leather Footwear productions whose uppers are produced using natural leather shall be labeled by leather material type; whose uppers are produced by splitting leather shall be labeled by leather material type and the words "split or second layer or third layer ", such as cow leather, sheep leather, pig splitting leather, cow split leather, etc.
Place of origin	Domestic produced shoes shall be labeled as ‘China’ or specify province or city. If other identification information already reflects domestic production, origin can be omitted. Shoes produced abroad shall be labeled with the country of region.
Enterprise name and Contact information	Domestic produced shoes shall be labeled with the name and contact information of the legally registered enterprise that is responsible for product quality. (Minimum: address and contact number) Shoes produced abroad shall be labeled with the name and contact information of the legally registered enterprise by its agents, importers or dealers, taking responsibility for product quality (Minimum: address and contact number)
Executive standard number	The product standard number on which the product is produced (national standard, industry standard, local standard, effective group standards or enterprise standard) Year number shall be indicated in the executed product standard (Note: : Execution standards without year numbers may be considered as the latest version of the standard)
Item number	Not specified
Quality level	Products shall be labeled according to the quality level rated by product standard, such as superior product, qualified product It should be labelled as qualified product when the product standard is not differentiating levels
Three guarantees	Not specified
Production date	Not specified
Color	Not specified
Marking location and content	Every shoe shall be labeled with at least the trademark or company name and shoe size, item number (exempt for sandals and slippers) Inner packing (including tag) shall be labeled at least with the following information: product name, shoe size, materials, place of origin, enterprise name and contact information, execution standard number, item number, quality level Enterprises can also label if needed: three guarantees, production date, color
Marking format and requirement	Mark shall at least apply text on the shoe and inner packing (including tag) and shall be visible and clear The character used for the mark shall be standard Chinese characters. Pinyin, foreign languages or Chinese minority scripts can be used alongside, but the font must not be greater than the corresponding Chinese character (except for trademarks). The font height of the Chinese character, number and letter used on packing (including tag) shall be greater than 1.8 mm. (5.25-point, font size 7)

Table 1

For more information, please refer to the standard QB/T 2673-2023 – Labeling for footwear products - or contact SGS directly

From a product safety and quality perspective we conduct tests to verify that products meet the desired global requirements and standards, for example: volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in adhesives, excessive chromium VI in leather and the risk of phthalates in plastic accessories associated with children’s footwear. With a global network of consumer product experts and testing facilities, we are the ideal partner to support your leather and footwear business needs. Contact us for more information or visit our website. In the end, it’s only trusted because it’s tested.

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