Prop 65, Country of Origin and UPC: What Your Box Printer Needs From a US Hardware Brand

What labeling information does my China packaging printer need from me for US-bound hardware boxes?

A: Your printer prints what you approve. The brand supplies the final wording for a Prop 65 warning where you have decided one applies, the country-of-origin marking, and the UPC artwork; the factory places those elements, prints them and checks them on the proof. Zhongshan Boya Color Printing Co., Ltd. (BOYA Printing), based in Xiaolan, Zhongshan, Guangdong, does not write the legal text or issue the barcode number.

Key points

• Prop 65 wording: the brand or its legal counsel confirms whether a warning is needed and which wording to use, against official California sources (OEHHA). The factory prints the signed text.

• Country of origin: the brand or importer confirms the marking against official US Customs and Border Protection requirements. The factory places it on the agreed panel.

• UPC: the brand supplies the number and the barcode file from its GS1 arrangement. The factory places it and checks the proof by eye.

• MOQ: MOQ from 1,000 pcs, depending on product and process.

• Reply time: We reply to inquiries within 24 hours.

Who decides the content, and what does the printer check?

Retail color-box information is not the same as the shipping marks on a master carton. For carton marks and labels the buyer sends for export packing, see What a Buyer Should Send for US Hardware Carton Shipping Marks and Labels. This article stays on the retail box: warning text, origin marking and the UPC.

Item	Who decides the content	What to send the printer	What the factory checks on the proof
Prop 65 warning	The brand or its counsel, against official OEHHA sources, including whether a warning is needed and which wording to use	The exact signed wording, the language version, and the panel where it should sit	The printed text matches the signed wording; it is complete, legible and not cropped
Country-of-origin marking	The brand or importer, against official US CBP requirements	The exact signed wording and the panel (and that the panel is not a tear-off or a disposable part, if that is your rule)	The marking appears on the agreed panel, in the agreed size, and is not hidden or cropped
UPC	The brand, under its GS1 arrangement	The UPC number plus a print-ready barcode file, or a written method for generating the barcode from that number	Position, size, quiet zone and visual readability against the approved file; the buyer may also scan the sample
Other retail copy	The brand	Ingredient, net-content or instruction lines that belong on the same artwork version	Those lines match the signed artwork for that SKU

The factory does not choose the warning text, the origin wording or the UPC number. Graphic and structural packaging design are available if a panel needs more room, but the wording itself changes only with your written confirmation.

Where do these files usually go wrong?

A few gaps show up often on US hardware color boxes:

• The warning is marked "needed" but the file has no version or no signed wording, so the pressroom cannot tell which text to use.

• The country-of-origin line is placed on a hang tab, a tear strip or another part that may not stay with the product, even though the brand's own rule was to put it on a permanent panel.

• The UPC arrives as a low-resolution JPG, or only as a number with no barcode file and no written generation method, so the bars cannot be checked against a defined original.

• Several SKUs share one box style, but the artwork versions mix warning text, origin lines or barcode numbers across finishes or kit contents.

Name each artwork version so the warning, the origin marking and the UPC stay with the correct SKU. If one SKU will also sell in Canada, the bilingual English/French file package is a separate hand-off; see Bilingual English/French Bath Fixture Boxes for Canada.

What should I send BOYA for a quote?

Send the signed Prop 65 wording if you have decided a warning applies, the signed country-of-origin wording and panel, the UPC number and barcode file, the dieline, color references, the SKU and artwork-version list, quantities and the destination. BOYA's core products are color boxes, corrugated color cartons and handmade rigid gift boxes; graphic and structural packaging design are also available. The box and the insert are quoted separately. Sampling is available so you can check the labels on a printed sample. MOQ from 1,000 pcs, depending on product and process. Typical lead times, depending on specifications: color boxes 7–15 days; folding cartons 10–25 days; rigid/gift boxes 15–45 days; tea, wine/liquor and mooncake boxes 15–30 days; displays typically 10–20 days. BOYA is certified to ISO 9001, FSC-C157096 (SAI-COC-004938) and ONE (formerly GMI). BOYA has four fully automatic Hongming rigid-box machines (6 heads, about 60,000 boxes per day combined) and in-house burst and compression testing (in-house, not third-party certification). See our retail-ready packaging guide and hardware and tools packaging page, call +86 189 2812 5102, email denny@byprintings.com, or use our contact page. We reply to inquiries within 24 hours. Factory visits are welcome by appointment. More on the factory: About BOYA.

FAQ

Can the factory write the Prop 65 text for us?

No. The brand or its counsel supplies the final wording, after confirming it against official OEHHA sources. The factory prints and proofs the signed text.

Can you print a UPC from a number alone?

Send a print-ready barcode file, or confirm in writing how the barcode should be generated from the number. A number on its own, or a low-resolution picture of a barcode, is not enough to check the proof against a defined original.

Where should the country-of-origin marking go?

The brand confirms the wording and the panel against official US CBP requirements. The factory can advise on available panel space and will place the marking where you specify, then check it on the proof.

What is the MOQ for US hardware color boxes at BOYA?

MOQ from 1,000 pcs, depending on product and process. Sampling is available so you can check the warning, origin marking and UPC on a printed sample before mass production.

Reviewed by Denny Mo. Last updated: 2026-11.