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New Hampshire: sustainable packaging labelling
New Hampshire does not currently appear to prescribe a generally applicable sustainable packaging mark for ordinary consumer packaging. Its former recycling-logo chapter was repealed in 2007, and a 2024 proposal concerning deceptive recyclability symbols was not enacted.
Executive summary
New Hampshire is a negative-finding jurisdiction for the general packaging-mark categories tracked by this report. The current statutory review did not identify a statewide resin-identification code, beverage-deposit legend, compostability presentation rule, non-flushable-wipe warning or packaging producer-responsibility logo for ordinary consumer packaging.
The historical and legislative record matters. New Hampshire formerly maintained a Recycling Logo chapter, RSA 149-N, but the legislature repealed that chapter through 2007 legislation effective 17 August 2007. House Bill 1376 in the 2024 session later proposed restrictions on recyclability claims and the chasing-arrows symbol, but the proposal was not enacted. Neither measure should be represented as a current on-pack requirement.
Legal status at a glance
| Requirement | Status | Operational meaning |
|---|---|---|
| State resin-identification code | none currently identified | Former RSA chapter 149-N was repealed effective 17 August 2007. A resin symbol appearing on a national package is not, on that basis alone, a current New Hampshire requirement. |
| Statewide beverage-deposit legend | none | New Hampshire has no statewide container-deposit system requiring a refund-value statement on ordinary beverage packaging. |
| Packaging-specific compostability, wipe or sorting mark | none identified | No generally applicable state presentation rule in these categories was identified within this report’s scope. |
| Recyclability-symbol restriction | not enacted | House Bill 1376 (2024) would have restricted misleading recyclability symbols, but it did not become current law. |
| Voluntary environmental representation | claim-dependent | The FTC Green Guides and New Hampshire Consumer Protection Act remain relevant to representations made voluntarily. |
Former Recycling Logo chapter
Older summaries may still refer to RSA chapter 149-N as though it were active. The official 2007 table of sections affected records repeal of chapter 149-N by chapter 138, section 6(I), with an effective date of 17 August 2007. A compliance team relying on an undated fifty-state coding chart can therefore reach the wrong conclusion for New Hampshire.
The repeal does not forbid a resin-identification mark required by another jurisdiction. It means that the reviewed New Hampshire chapter no longer supplies the legal basis for requiring that mark. National artwork should identify the actual external requirement and should separately test whether arrow imagery creates a broader recyclability impression.
2024 recyclability proposal
House Bill 1376 would have regulated claims that plastic products and packaging are recyclable and would have addressed use of the chasing-arrows symbol. It was introduced during the 2024 session but did not complete the legislative process. It is therefore historical proposal material, not a pending implementation standard or an enacted mandate.
This distinction is operationally important. A legislative proposal can signal future policy direction, but it does not authorise a team to describe a label as mandatory, assign a compliance date or reject inventory for failure to carry proposed language. Any revived measure should be evaluated under its own bill number, text and legislative status.
How to interpret the negative finding
“None identified” is a scoped, date-specific conclusion. It does not state that every package or product sold in New Hampshire is free from labelling law. Food, drugs, chemicals, batteries and other specialised products may carry federal or state warnings and disposal information outside this report’s sustainable-packaging scope. Local collection programmes can also give operational instructions that are not statewide package mandates.
Before release, record the package type, product category, statutes reviewed and verification date. Recheck the result when the legislature convenes, when a claim changes or when a product moves into a specialised category. Negative findings need the same version control as positive requirements.
Voluntary environmental claims
Businesses remain responsible for the accuracy of voluntary recycling, compostability, biodegradability, recycled-content and reuse statements. The FTC Green Guides explain how qualifications, consumer access and the package’s actual end-of-life performance affect the likely consumer takeaway. A resin number or technical ability to process material is not, by itself, adequate substantiation for an unqualified recyclable claim.
New Hampshire's Consumer Protection Act, RSA chapter 358-A, prohibits unfair or deceptive acts or practices in trade or commerce. The overall presentation matters: words, arrows, colour, certification seals, disposal instructions and omitted qualifications can operate together. Evidence should address the complete marketed package and the places in which the claim will be understood.
Who bears responsibility
Because no general state mark was identified, there is no single packaging-mark obligor within this report’s scope. Responsibility for voluntary representations can extend to the manufacturer, brand owner, importer, distributor, retailer or other person responsible for creating or disseminating the claim. Specialised product laws may identify different actors.
National artwork should name an evidence owner for each voluntary symbol and a legal owner for each mark imported from another state’s requirement. This prevents a legacy icon from being treated as a New Hampshire mandate and ensures that claims are reassessed when collection access or package construction changes.
Consumer-protection enforcement
The New Hampshire Department of Justice administers the state’s consumer-protection framework and can pursue conduct prohibited by RSA chapter 358-A. Available remedies depend on the facts and procedural route and can include injunctive and monetary relief. Private claims may also be available under the Act.
Federal jurisdiction remains relevant. The Federal Trade Commission can challenge deceptive environmental marketing under section 5 of the FTC Act. The absence of a state-specific artwork rule is therefore not a safe harbour for an unsupported environmental claim.
Practical artwork checklist
Do not treat former RSA chapter 149-N or 2024 House Bill 1376 as current law. Confirm that no later measure has been enacted, screen the product for specialised requirements, inventory every environmental word and symbol, and document the basis for any multistate mark. Substantiate the overall consumer takeaway and set a dated re-verification point.
Primary sources and verification
New Hampshire General Court. Revised Statutes Annotated table of contents. Official current code portal
New Hampshire General Court. 2007 table of sections affected, recording repeal of RSA chapter 149-N. Official legislative table
New Hampshire General Court. House Bill 1376 (2024), proposed recyclability representations. Official bill text
New Hampshire General Court. RSA 358-A:2, unlawful acts and practices. Official statute
Federal Trade Commission. Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims, 16 C.F.R. Part 260. Official Green Guides
Federal Trade Commission. Environmental Claims: Summary of the Green Guides. Business guidance
The repeal and failed proposal should not be converted into current artwork requirements. “None identified” remains a scoped finding. Last verified: 21 August 2026.