Anyone responsible for marketing a cosmetic product should be well aware of the importance of the Product Information File in Europe. But in practice, this point is often relegated to the background, with marketing and technical aspects taking center stage. Insights from Estelle Dehier of Labosphère.
Many of the customers who come to us for support think they have all the information about their products, and that they too own their formulas, but when they try to claim their product files, they quickly become disillusioned.
Remember that the Product Information File is not subject to a marketing authorization for the cosmetic product you have developed. However, it is a legal obligation, as set out in Article 11 of the Cosmetics Regulation.
The PIF: Product Information File
The PIF is specific to each cosmetic product. It contains all the product’s detailed information. It must be regularly updated (this is often where the problem lies), and must be made available to the competent authorities (DGCCRF and ANSES) in the event of controls.
This PIF has been mandatory for almost 15 years now, and must be compiled before a product is placed on the market, yet we continue to observe just as many non-conformities during inspections.
As a reminder, in 2024, around 200 PIFs were examined by the DGCCRF: 9 out of 10 operators were found to be non-compliant; 38% were issued warnings; 38% were also subject to an administrative police measure, and 5% were the …
