Q.01

What must a fabric content label say in the US?

A US fabric content label must give three things: the fiber content (generic fiber names with percentages by weight), the identity of the company responsible (its business name or an FTC Registered Identification Number, the "RN"), and the country of origin. This comes from the FTC's Textile Rules under the Textile Fiber Products Identification Act, 16 CFR 303.16(a) [1].

1. Fiber content

  • Order and threshold: List the generic names and percentages by weight of each fiber at 5 percent or more, in order of predominance by weight. Leave out permissive ornamentation. Any "other fiber(s)" percentage goes last [2].
  • Fibers under 5 percent: These "shall be designated as 'other fiber'". Two or more such fibers are grouped together as "other fibers". The exception is a fiber with "a clearly established and definite functional significance" at that amount, which may be named [3].
  • Manufactured fiber names: Use the generic names set in § 303.7 or in ISO 2076:2013(E), which § 303.7 incorporates by reference [4].
  • Trademarks: A fiber trademark may be used, but the generic name must appear right next to it in type of equal size and conspicuousness [5].
  • Descriptive terms: Truthful terms such as "100 percent combed cotton" may be added to the generic name [6].
  • Tolerance: Each declared percentage may be off by up to 3 percent of total fiber weight. For example, a fiber labelled 40% may be anywhere from 37% to 43% [7]. This tolerance does not apply when you claim the product is made wholly of one fiber [8].

2. Company identity

  • Name: This "shall be the name under which the person is doing business". A word trademark registered with the US Patent Office and used as a house mark may be used instead [9].
  • RN instead of the name: An RN may replace the name [10]. The FTC issues RNs through rn.ftc.gov to qualified persons residing in the United States [11]. An RN cannot be transferred to anyone else [12].

3. Country of origin

  • Imported products: Name the country where the product was processed or manufactured [13]. That country is determined under US Customs and Border Protection rules [14].
  • Language of the country name: Use the English name of the country. Adjectival forms, clear variant spellings ("Brasil") and clear abbreviations ("Gt. Britain") are accepted [15].
  • Made entirely in the US from US materials: Label it "Made in U.S.A." or a clear equivalent [16].
  • Made in the US from imported materials: The label must say so [17].
  • Made partly abroad and partly in the US: The label must describe the processing done in each country [18].
  • Which materials to trace: You only need to consider covered materials one step back in the manufacturing chain [19].

Presentation and placement

  • Legibility: All required information must be clearly legible, conspicuous and readily accessible. All fiber content information must be in type of equal size and conspicuousness [20].
  • Other wording on the label: Nothing else on the label may minimize, detract from or conflict with the required information [21].
  • Using the care label: The required information may appear on any attached label, including the care label required by 16 CFR Part 423 [1].
  • Attachment: The label must be securely attached and durable enough to stay on until the product reaches the end consumer [22].
  • Products with a neck: The country of origin label must be at the inside center of the neck, midway between the shoulder seams, or close to another label there. Fiber content and the RN or name may be on that label or on another readily accessible label.
  • Products without a neck: The required information goes on a conspicuous label inside or outside the product.
  • Front of the label: Country of origin "must always appear on the front side of the label". The other required information may be on the front or the back [23].
  • Packaged hosiery: A label on the package can stand in for labels on each item if the hosiery is sold to the consumer in that package and the information applies equally to every item [24].
  • Certain socks: For socks under the listed tariff (HTSUS) subheadings, the English name of the country of origin must go on the front of the package, next to the size [25].
  • Mail-order and online catalogs: The product description must state clearly whether the product was made in U.S.A., imported, or both [26].

I didn't look at the exemptions in Part 303 or at the separate wool rules (16 CFR Part 300) and care labeling rules (Part 423). Products containing wool, or products needing care instructions, have extra requirements.

Approach: I searched the current eCFR text of the FTC Textile Rules, 16 CFR Part 303.

Q.02

What tolerances and label placement rules apply?

The fiber content tolerance is 3 percent of total fiber weight. It does not apply to products labelled as made wholly of one fiber. Placement depends on whether the product has a neck: the country of origin goes at the inside center of the neck, and every label must be securely attached, conspicuous and durable until the product reaches the consumer (16 CFR 303.43 and 303.15, FTC Textile Rules).

Tolerances (16 CFR 303.43)

  • The 3% rule: A product with more than one fiber is "not deemed to be misbranded" if each fiber's actual percentage is within 3 percent of total fiber weight of the labelled figure. Permissive ornamentation is excluded from the calculation. For example, a fiber labelled at 40% may be anywhere from 37% to 43% [7].
  • Going beyond 3%: The product "shall be misbranded" unless the person charged proves that the entire difference came from unavoidable variations in manufacture despite due care [27].
  • No tolerance for single-fiber claims: If you say the product is made wholly of one fiber, the 3% tolerance does not apply. The one exception is ornamentation, where the claim says "exclusive of ornamentation" [8]. "All" or "100%" may be used only when the product, or a part of it, is wholly one fiber, apart from ornamentation, decoration, elastic or trimming that needs no disclosure [28].
  • Wool products: I found no tolerance provision in the Wool Rules (16 CFR Part 300). Part 300 does say fiber ornamentation over 5 percent "shall be included" in the declared percentages [29].

Placement and attachment (16 CFR Part 303)

Attachment and durability

  • A label must be attached securely to each textile product and, where required, to its package. It must be conspicuous and durable enough to stay attached through distribution, sale and resale until delivery to the consumer [22].

Where on the product

  • Products with a neck: The country of origin label must be at the inside center of the neck, midway between the shoulder seams, or close to another label there. Fiber content and the RN or company name may be on that label or on another conspicuous, readily accessible label inside or outside the garment.
  • All other products: The required information goes on a conspicuous, readily accessible label or labels, inside or outside.
  • Front or back of the label: Country of origin "must always appear on the front side". The other required information may be on the front or the back [23].
  • Sharing the care label: Subject to the neck rule above, the required information may go on any attached label, including the Part 423 care label, as long as the combination is not misleading [1].

Legibility and language

  • Legibility: The required information must be clearly legible, conspicuous and readily accessible. All fiber content information must be in type of equal size and conspicuousness [20].
  • Other wording: Nothing else on the label may minimize, detract from or conflict with the required information [21].
  • Language: Required information "shall be set out in the English language". If it also appears in another language, it must appear in English too [30].

Packages, sets and multi-part products

  • Sealed packages: If a package is meant to stay intact until it reaches the consumer, both the package and each item inside (except hosiery) must be labelled. The package needs no label if it is transparent enough to read the item's label through it [31].
  • Hosiery: One package label is enough if all three conditions are met: the hosiery is sold to the consumer in that package, the package carries the required information, and that information applies equally to every item [24][32][33][34].
  • Socks under the HTSUS subheadings listed in 303.15(d): The English name of the country of origin goes on the front of the package, next to the size. Mixed packages that contain other types of goods are excluded [25].
  • Parts of different fiber content: Each part needs its own label. If the parts are sold as a single product or ensemble, one label may show each part's composition separately [35].
  • Pairs or ensembles of the same fiber content: Only one unit needs the label [36].
  • Reused stuffing: Upholstered products, mattresses and cushions with reused stuffing need a securely attached tag of at least 2 by 3 inches. The statement must be in English, in plain type not less than 1/3 inch high [37].

Wool products (Part 300)

Part 300 repeats the Part 303 rules almost word for word:

  • the neck and front-of-label rules [38];
  • secure, durable attachment [39];
  • use of the care label and equal type size;
  • sealed and transparent packages [40].

Care labels (Part 423)

  • Permanence: A care label must be permanent and attached so that it will not become separated from the product and stays legible for the product's useful life [41].
  • Visibility at sale: Manufacturers and importers "must attach care labels so that they can be seen or easily found" when the product is offered for sale. If packaging, display or folding hides the label, the care information must also appear on the outside of the package or on a hang tag [42].

Approach: I searched the current eCFR text of the FTC Textile Rules (16 CFR Part 303), Wool Rules (Part 300) and Care Labeling Rule (Part 423). I did not check the statutes themselves (the Textile and Wool Acts), and that is where any wool-specific tolerance would sit.

Q.03