USDA BioPreferred® Program Application

ASTM D6866 requires carbonate components to be excluded from the biobased content result. Special procedures are required for materials containing carbonates. Contact the BioPreferred Program (biobasedtesting@im-strat.com) with any questions on testing samples with undetectable or encapsulated inorganic carbon.

Unless otherwise instructed, we will sub-sample the submitted material in a quantity reasonable for the analytical method. If there are any special instructions to ensure the sub-sample best represents the client’s interests, please discuss with the laboratory prior to analysis. Since the laboratory cannot be experts in all manufacturing processes and products, the responsibility for analysis of a representative sub-sample lies with the client/submitter.

Retail or Intermediate?

Your application with the USDA BioPreferred Program will ask you to list your product as either a retail product or an intermediate product. “Retail” is defined as a product that is purchased directly by the consumer or is packaging used “as-is” to contain a product purchased by the consumer. “Intermediate” is a raw material which is sold, then modified or used in making a “retail” which is then purchased by the consumer.

If you have listed your material on the USDA Certified Biobased application as an intermediate product, it is OK to sub-sample and deliver in any packaging appropriate for the material. Beta Analytic will take a picture once the sample is received in the laboratory.

If you have listed your material on the USDA Certified Biobased application as a retail product, the BioPreferred Program would like you to send a sample in its retail packaging (usually the smallest available is requested by the laboratory). The laboratory is required to take a picture of this as third-party validation of what was analyzed (i.e. the result was obtained on material taken from the same container shown in the picture). You cannot sub-sample and take a picture yourself for a product applied for as a retail product. You must send the product in its final consumer packaging. There is no self-declaration option for retail product sub-sampling.

The client should ensure that the products to be sent can be safely disposed of in the state of Florida. For example, bleach is okay, but certain solvents are not okay. If there is a doubt, please consult the laboratory before submitting the sample. If you would like to sub-sample a retail product before submitting it to the laboratory, please consult the USDA BioPreferred Program.

After you have reached the stage of signing a contract (the Participant Agreement), the USDA BioPreferred Program will instruct you to contact Beta to discuss the details of the analysis (including appropriate quantity to send and where to send it).

Other examples of vials you may use are found here. Please make sure that the seal of your vials are tight and that the vials are wrapped properly to prevent breakage during shipment.

Please make sure the vials have chemically non-reactive seals, e.g. made of a silicone disk with one or two teflon faces. If you use low-volume screw top vials like the amber one above, make sure they have a non-reactive cap liner made from silicone and teflon or some other chemically non-reactive material.

Do not use vials that have caps lined with a piece of cardboard with an Aluminum-foil face on one side. The cardboard side is glued to the cap. These are not suitable for fuels or other volatile liquids as the vapors can dissolve the glue and contaminate the sample during shipment. The clear snap caps are also not typically recommended for fuels.

NOTE: If the sample contains VOCs, the vial should be full (no head space).