CONSUMER PRODUCTS
Consumer products quality control is carried out in various specialised laboratories of the SGL.
PHARMACEUTICAL PRODUCTS (Lab.4, Lab.15)
The necessary infrastructure and expertise for the physico-chemical and microbiological quality control of pharmaceuticals was built since 1938 aiming at:
- Quality, safety and efficiency of pharmaceuticals for human use available in the market and those purchased by the government
- The improvement of procedures of the Ministry of Health concerning pharmaceutical quality control
- Quality, safety and effectiveness of veterinary drugs.
For the achievement of the above aims, the SGL carries out many Physicochemical, Pharmacotechnical, Microbiological and other quality controls in Pharmaceutical products for Human or Veterinary use. All the pharmaceutical forms such as tablets, capsules, intravenous infusions, injections, syrups etc are tested, using high technology equipment, for quality (identification, quantitation, homogeneity), efficiency (dissolution and disintegration tests), safety (related substances, disintegration products, visible and semi-visible particles in injections etc) as well as microbiological status.
The control is based on programs carried out in cooperation with the Pharmaceutical and Veterinary Services as well as in the framework of the European Network of Official Control Laboratories (OMCL), in which the SGL participates.
The SGL participated in the prepartaion of the Medicrime Convention of the Council of Europe and signed the convention on behalf of the Cyprus Government in Moscow in October 2011.
COSMETICS (Lab.19)
The SGL is the official laboratory for control of cosmetics in cooperation with the Pharmaceutical Services. The aim of the control is:
- the detection of products which do not conform to the legislation requirements and specifically the detection of forbidden substances
- the microbiological evaluation
- consumer protection and promotion of healty competion
The SGL has frequently detected non-conforming products, which were reported by the relevant authority to the Rapid Alert System for Consumer products (RAPEX).
CHILDREN TOYS (Lab.12)
The control of children's toys aims at protecting children and infants from chemical hazards, i.e. chemical substances (heavy metals, phthalic esters etc) found in children's toys, to which the child may get exposed, as well as from physical hazards arising from non-satisfactory mechanical and physical properties. Children are especially vulnerable to bad quality materials or to bad manufacture of the toys, which may lead to injury or suffocation of the child.
OTHER CONSUMER PRODUCTS (Lab.11)
The SGL cooperates with the Department of Labour Inspection for the implementation of the Legislation for Chemical Substances of 2010 and of the European Regulation REACH for the control of dangerous chemical substances in consumer products found in the Cyprus market, such as:
- Azo dyes in textiles
- Solvents in glues and other products