Melamine plates, cups and bowls are popular products to source in China. They are light, colourful and almost unbreakable. The same goes for nylon kitchen tools such as spatulas, ladles and whisks. They look like simple products, but the EU treats them as a known risk. For more than ten years, shipments of these products from China and Hong Kong have needed their own paperwork and faced extra checks at the border.
The reason is migration. Melamine can release formaldehyde into food, and nylon (polyamide) can release primary aromatic amines, some of which may cause cancer. EU inspections in China and Hong Kong in 2009 found serious gaps in the local controls, and many products still did not meet the limits. The EU answered with Commission Regulation (EU) No 284/2011. For you as an importer it comes down to three things: two documents for every shipment, a lab report that shows the right limits, and paperwork that is ready before the goods arrive.
- Which melamine and nylon products are covered
- The two documents every shipment needs
- Migration limits for melamine and nylon
- Border checks on kitchenware from China
- Bamboo melamine: not allowed at all
- Other EU food contact rules for melamine and nylon
- Checklist for importing melamine and nylon kitchenware
Which melamine and nylon products are covered
Regulation (EU) No 284/2011 covers plastic kitchenware made of polyamide or melamine that originates in or is shipped from China or Hong Kong. Polyamide is the chemical name for nylon. Both conditions count: a melamine plate made in China but shipped from another country is covered, and so is a product shipped from Hong Kong.
Kitchenware is wider than the word suggests. The European Commission has confirmed that tableware falls under it too, because plates and bowls are used both to prepare and to serve food. In practice the rules cover products such as:
- Melamine plates, bowls, cups and serving trays
- Melamine children's tableware
- Nylon spatulas, ladles, turners and slotted spoons
- Nylon whisks, tongs and other kitchen tools
Customs recognises these goods by their commodity code. The goods fall under heading 3924 10 00 (tableware and kitchenware of plastics). The Swedish Food Agency lists the TARIC code 3924 10 00 11 for polyamide and melamine kitchenware from China or Hong Kong. All shipments under that code are subject to the border controls.
The rules do not depend on how you sell. Whether you supply a wholesaler, sell on Amazon or run your own webshop, the shipment is checked when it enters the EU.
The two documents every shipment needs
Article 3 of Regulation (EU) No 284/2011 sets the import conditions. For every consignment, the importer has to submit two documents to the competent authority at the point where the goods enter the EU.
- A declaration. The regulation has a fixed model for it in its Annex. In it, the importer declares that the products meet the limits for primary aromatic amines and formaldehyde. It must be written in an official language of the EU country where the goods enter. The European Commission publishes a template.
- A laboratory report. The declaration must be backed by a lab report that shows the products stay under those limits. A declaration without test results does not count.
A consignment is one quantity of products covered by the same documents, carried on the same means of transport and coming from the same country. Each consignment needs its own declaration and lab report.
The competent authority writes on the declaration whether the goods may be released. Customs only releases the goods for free circulation once that completed declaration is presented (Article 8). Without it, your shipment stays at the border.
Already have a test report from your factory? With our test report review we check whether it matches the EU rules before you rely on it at the border.
Migration limits for melamine and nylon
The migration limits for melamine and nylon come from the EU regulation on plastic food contact materials, Regulation (EU) No 10/2011. Regulation 284/2011 refers to them for the import checks.
| Material | Substance | Limit |
|---|---|---|
| Melamine | Formaldehyde (including hexamethylenetetramine) | 15 mg per kg of food |
| Melamine | Melamine | 2.5 mg per kg of food |
| Polyamide (nylon) | Primary aromatic amines listed in REACH | Not detectable, with a detection limit of 0.002 mg per kg for each amine |
| Polyamide (nylon) | Other primary aromatic amines | 0.01 mg per kg in total |
Regulation 284/2011 itself still names an older detection limit for the sum of primary aromatic amines. The plastics rules have since become stricter. Regulation (EU) 2020/1245 set the limit per amine that is in the table, and it applies to every product placed on the market since 23 September 2022. So ask your lab to test against the current version of Regulation 10/2011, not against an older one.
There is a second change from 2020 that matters for kitchenware. Products that are used again and again, such as plates and spatulas, are tested three times in a row, and the result of the third test must stay under the limit. Since 2020 the migration must also not go up from the first test to the third. A report with only one test does not show that.
Test conditions also matter. A lab tests at the highest temperature the product is meant for. A spatula for frying is tested hotter than a salad bowl. Melamine in particular releases more melamine and formaldehyde above 70 °C. The German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) therefore advises against using melamine for cooking, frying or heating food in the microwave. Tell the lab what the product is for, and make sure your listing and packaging do not promise uses that were not tested.
Want to know more about choosing a lab and a test? Read our article on product testing for the EU.
Border checks on kitchenware from China
Kitchenware from China is checked at the border before customs releases it, and the authorities want to know in advance that it is coming. Under Article 4, the importer or their representative must notify the authority at the point of entry at least two working days before the goods physically arrive. In practice this is done with a Common Health Entry Document (CHED-D) in TRACES, the EU's online system for border controls. Your customs broker or forwarder usually handles this, but they need your documents in time.
Some EU countries only allow these goods to enter through specific ports or airports. They publish a list of these designated points of entry, and the European Commission links to the national lists. Check this before you book the transport, or your container may arrive at a port that cannot clear it.
At the point of entry, the authority carries out the checks in Article 6:
- A documentary check on every consignment, within two working days of arrival.
- An identity check and a physical check, including a lab test, on 10% of consignments. The selection is random, so you cannot predict which shipment will be opened.
If a check finds a problem, the authority reports it in the EU's Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF). That report is visible to authorities in all EU countries. The authority may allow the goods to travel on to their destination while the lab results are pending (Article 7). They then stay under official control until the results are known.
The importer usually pays for the checks. The Swedish Food Agency, for example, charges a control fee per consignment plus the costs of sampling and analysis. If the products fail, the costs of returning or destroying them come on top.
Bamboo melamine: not allowed at all
Many products are marketed as "bamboo tableware" or "eco cups". Often they are not made of bamboo alone, but of ground bamboo or another plant fibre mixed into melamine resin. These products cannot be sold in the EU.
The reason is in Regulation (EU) No 10/2011. Only substances on the Union list in Annex I of that regulation may be used to make plastic food contact materials. Ground bamboo, bamboo flour and similar fillers such as corn starch or wheat straw are not on that list. The expert group of the European Commission concluded in 2020 that these materials are not authorised. Controls also found that they often release far more melamine and formaldehyde than allowed.
In 2021 the European Commission and the EU countries launched a joint enforcement action against these products. The Benelux countries called for their immediate withdrawal from the market. Labelling them as natural, biodegradable or eco-friendly can also be misleading. If a supplier offers you bamboo melamine, do not order it for the EU, whatever their test report says.
Not sure your supplier is reliable? With our supplier verification we check the factory before you place an order.
Other EU food contact rules for melamine and nylon
The import rules come on top of the normal EU rules for food contact materials. They do not replace them. Three of them matter most for melamine and nylon kitchenware.
The first is the declaration of compliance under Article 15 of Regulation (EU) No 10/2011. Every business in the supply chain that sells plastic food contact materials, except at retail level, must provide a written declaration that the product meets the rules. Annex IV lists what must be in it. This is a different document from the import declaration of Regulation 284/2011. You need both.
The second is labelling under Article 15 of Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004. A product that is not obviously meant for food must carry the words "for food contact" or the glass and fork symbol. You can download the food contact materials symbol for free in our Academy, together with all other food contact symbols.
The third is product safety. The GPSR covers risks that food contact law does not address, such as sharp edges, and it requires traceability information on the product: the manufacturer and, for manufacturers outside the EU, the economic operator responsible in the EU. If you also sell ceramic tableware, read our article on ceramic tableware and the new lead and cadmium limits. Ceramics have their own declaration and limits.
Finally, the EU also checks products from other countries. In 2019 the Commission recommended a coordinated control plan for formaldehyde and primary aromatic amines in kitchenware, because problems were found in products from other origins too (Recommendation (EU) 2019/794). If you buy melamine in Vietnam or Thailand, the border procedure of Regulation 284/2011 does not apply, but the limits still do.
Selling kitchenware from outside the EU? As your EU Authorised Representative under the GPSR we take on that role for your products.
Checklist for importing melamine and nylon kitchenware
- Check the material and the origin. Melamine or nylon from China or Hong Kong falls under Regulation 284/2011.
- Refuse bamboo melamine and other plant fibre mixes. They are not authorised in the EU.
- Order a lab test per product against the current Regulation 10/2011, with three successive migration tests at the right temperature.
- Get a declaration of compliance under Annex IV of Regulation 10/2011 from your supplier.
- Fill in the import declaration from the Annex of Regulation 284/2011 for every consignment, in the language of the country of entry.
- Check whether the country of entry has designated points of entry, and book the transport accordingly.
- Give your customs broker the documents in time for the notice at least two working days before arrival.
- Add the glass and fork symbol or "for food contact" where needed, and the GPSR traceability details.
- Budget for the control fee and possible lab costs at the border.
Melamine and nylon kitchenware is a good product to source in Asia, as long as the paperwork is right before the goods leave the factory. Our Pre Shipment Inspection checks that the batch matches the approved sample before it ships.
Sources
- Commission Regulation (EU) No 284/2011 of 22 March 2011 on the import of polyamide and melamine plastic kitchenware from China and Hong Kong, Articles 2 to 8 and Annex
- Commission Regulation (EU) No 10/2011 of 14 January 2011 on plastic materials and articles intended to come into contact with food, Articles 5 and 15, Annexes I, II and IV
- Commission Regulation (EU) 2020/1245 of 2 September 2020 amending Regulation (EU) No 10/2011
- Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004 of 27 October 2004 on materials and articles intended to come into contact with food, Article 15
- Commission Recommendation (EU) 2019/794 of 15 May 2019 on a coordinated control plan for substances migrating from food contact materials
- Regulation (EU) 2023/988 on general product safety (GPSR)
- European Commission, Expert Working Group on Food Contact Materials, note on plastics with bamboo and other plant-based fillers (2020)
- German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR), Opinion No 012/2011 of 9 March 2011 on the release of melamine and formaldehyde from tableware and kitchen utensils
- Swedish Food Agency (Livsmedelsverket), import of kitchen and tableware from China and the Hong Kong region (consulted November 2026)
