The Consumer Code defines bulk sales as the sale of unpackaged products in quantities chosen by the consumer. This sale is made in containers that can be reused.

The decree of 30 August 2023 aims to ensure compliance with good hygiene practices in the face of various risks (microbial contamination, accident...). It applies to both retail and wholesale shops accessible to the consumer, as well as distance and mobile retail outlets.

List of products prohibited from being sold in bulk

For public health and safety purposes, bulk sales are prohibited for the following products:

• heat-treated liquid dairy products;
• raw milk, except where it is delivered in bulk directly to the final consumer by the seller who packages it in plain view of the consumer or through a liquid vending machine;
• infant formulae and follow-on formulae, processed cereal-based foods and baby foods, foods intended for special medical purposes and total daily ration replacements for weight control;
• feed materials and compound feedingstuffs;
• raw pet food;
• additives and premixtures intended for animal nutrition;
• food supplements;
• deep-frozen products;
• biocidal products (disinfectants, insecticides, etc.);
• substances or mixtures, the packaging of which is fitted with a child-resistant closure or bears a tactile warning of danger, and liquid consumer laundry detergents in soluble packaging for single use;
• electric batteries and accumulators;
• tampons among single-use personal care products;
• any product whose sale in bulk is incompatible with the public health obligations laid down in the regulations and directives adopted pursuant to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

List of products authorized for sale in bulk under conditions

The Order also states that certain products may be sold in bulk when sold on an assisted service or by means of a distribution device suitable for self-service bulk sales.

The assisted service is defined as a method of sale in which the product is packaged and immediately delivered to the consumer by an employee at the point of sale.

The suitable dispensing device is a device for preserving the integrity of the product, for ensuring its preservation, for satisfying the specific requirements relating to its safety and for complying with the hygiene and safety requirements of the sales area.

The following products are covered by this authorization subject to conditions:

• single-use materials and articles intended to come into contact with food which cannot be washed before use;
• single-use baby diapers and sanitary napkins, among single-use personal care products;
• toilet paper, household towels, paper napkins, tissues, hydrophilic cotton and other articles of cotton or other vegetable fibers intended for face and body hygiene or wiping, cotton buds intended for single use;
• perishable foodstuffs which may, after a short period, present a danger to health;
• food, other than deep-frozen products, stored at a temperature of -12°C or below when sold to consumers;
• cosmetic products for which a ‘challenge test’ (test verifying the efficacy of the antimicrobial preservatives used in the product) for preservation and microbiological controls on the finished product are necessary;
• substances or mixtures which are neither biocidal products nor substances or mixtures whose packaging is fitted with a child-resistant closure or bears a tactile warning of danger and liquid consumer laundry detergents in soluble packaging for single use.