Consumer products are defined in the relevant legislation, as well as in the Food Legislation Act.

Consumer products use are the items that come into direct skin contact with humans, or indirectly via foodstuff. Consumer products use consist of various materials such as wood, ceramic, glass, textiles, leather, plant fibres, metal, rubber or synthetics.

Good examples are crockery, food packaging material, clothing articles, articles for infants and toddlers, articles for personal hygiene, toys and fun articles, detergents and cleansers for household use.

In accordance with these guidelines, testing and legal analysis take place in the Institute for Testing Consumer Products Lüneburg. For instance, utensils are tested for a possible impairment of foodstuff through transition of substances (release of toxic heavy metal in crockery, excess of plasticizers in packaging material, and lately the effectiveness of antimicrobial equipped utensils by food contact etc.). Substances that trigger allergies are a focal testing point, substances such as colorants (dyes), latex proteins or nickel in various utensils which come into human contact, and as an actual topic, the biocide finish in textiles with tin compounds. Toys in particular are tested for safety while taking into consideration child related suitability for play. In the case of cleansers and skincare products, the identification and established contents are to be analysed, also taking into consideration the regulations for hazardous material.