Testing and Analysis
From £75
Stability, microbiology, photoprotection and analytical testing carried out in our three in-house laboratories. Analytical work is not contracted out; results pass directly to the assessor preparing your CPSR.
- Microbiology: Preservative Efficacy Test (ISO 11930, £165) and Microbial Content Test (ISO 17516:2014, £95)
- Stability and packaging compatibility under Annex I section 5 and Commission Implementing Decision 2013/674/EU
- Photoprotection: in vitro and in vivo SPF and UVA-PF under the current ISO series
- Analytical: heavy metals by ICP-MS (£75 per metal), antioxidant capacity by DPPH (£155), and GC/MS of essential oils, hydrolats and perfumes
- Three in-house laboratories; analytical work is not contracted out
Stability data, microbiological data and analytical data are each a section of Annex I in their own right, and each is read carefully by the inspector who reads the Product Information File. The data is only as credible as the laboratory that produced it. Oxford Biosciences operates three in-house laboratories under a Head of Laboratory Sciences. The work is conducted by our own staff, to our protocols, with results going directly to the safety assessor preparing the CPSR. Analytical work is not contracted out.
The legal requirements sit in Annex I, sections 3, 4 and 5 of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009; the ISO standards are the technical means by which compliance is shown.
Microbiology
The Preservative Efficacy Test to ISO 11930 (£165) inoculates the product with the five specified challenge organisms and enumerates viable counts over a 28-day window against the Criterion A or B thresholds. The Microbial Content Test to ISO 17516:2014 (£95) is the batch-release test, reporting Total Aerobic Mesophilic Count and Total Yeast and Mould Count with detection of the four specified pathogens. A simpler Total Viable Count is £95, and individualised microbiology is scoped at quotation.
Stability and compatibility
Real-time stability (£250, a 12-week protocol) records quantitative pH, viscosity, density and organoleptic data in line with Annex I section 5 and Commission Implementing Decision 2013/674/EU. Packaging compatibility (£250) tests weight loss, container deformation, discolouration and closure integrity. Accelerated stability with inferred shelf life is £225.
Performance and analytical
Heavy metals are quantified by ICP-MS against Annex II at £75 per metal. Antioxidant capacity is measured by the DPPH radical-scavenging assay at £155. Human Repeat Insult Patch Testing (HRIPT) is £1,450. Full constituent listing by GC/MS, with quantification of regulated allergens, is £128 for a single essential oil or hydrolat and £205 for a blend or perfume compound.
Photoprotection
In vitro SPF to ISO 23675:2024 is £1,495 and in vitro UVA-PF and critical wavelength to ISO 24443:2021 is £625. A hybrid SPF and UVA-PF determination to ISO 23698:2024 is available from £3,995, and reference in vivo SPF (ISO 24444:2019), in vivo UVA-PF (ISO 24442:2022) and water-resistance testing are quoted on application.
Aquatic and environmental
For products making reef-safe, marine-safe or biodegradability claims, we conduct coral acute and chronic ecotoxicity, ready biodegradability (OECD 301F, £1,895) and marine biodegradability (OECD 306, £2,495), and marine algal and crustacean ecotoxicity. All fees are exclusive of VAT.
Clinical efficacy studies
For performance claims such as anti-ageing and brightening, we run clinical efficacy studies on human panels, the primary evidence a regulator or broadcaster will accept for a quantified claim.
Frequently asked questions
What testing does Oxford Biosciences provide?
Oxford Biosciences operates three in-house laboratories supporting Annex I, sections 3 to 5 of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009. Services include microbiology (Preservative Efficacy Test to ISO 11930, Microbial Content Test to ISO 17516:2014), real-time and accelerated stability and packaging compatibility, photoprotection testing (in vitro and in vivo SPF and UVA-PF under the current ISO series), and analytical work including heavy metals by ICP-MS, antioxidant capacity by the DPPH assay, and GC/MS constituent analysis of essential oils, hydrolats and perfumes. Analytical work is not contracted out.
What is a Preservative Efficacy Test (challenge test)?
A Preservative Efficacy Test, also called a challenge test, demonstrates that a product's preservative system controls microbial growth across its life. Oxford Biosciences performs it to ISO 11930 for £165: the product is inoculated with the five specified challenge organisms (Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Candida albicans and Aspergillus brasiliensis), and viable counts are enumerated over a 28-day window against the Criterion A or B log-reduction thresholds. Typical turnaround is six weeks, reflecting the protocol duration plus enumeration and reporting.