Before submitting your samples, please consult directly with the USDA BioPreferred® Program. Make sure your Biobased Participant Agreement has been signed and accepted.
Results obtained in advance of the signed agreement and acceptance into the program will not be accepted by the USDA.
How to apply for BioPreferred Certification?
Product Certification Process (PDF)
Disclaimer: This video is hosted in a third-party site and may contain advertising.
Beta Analytic is not affiliated with the USDA or the BioPreferred Program.
Beta Online Form (select “Analysis for USDA Applicants” under Analysis Requested)
Please also send your:
– USDA Application Number, and
– Documentation of Sample Selection by Manufacturer/Vendor forms
These forms are attached to the email notification you will receive from the USDA BioPreferred Program.
Beta Analytic can receive a MAXIMUM of 25 grams or 10 cc per sample. If your product is bigger, please contact the USDA BioPreferred Program to obtain approval for sub-sampling before it is submitted for testing.
Materials REQUIRING special disposal – Please contact the lab for discussion prior to submission.
Materials suitable for garbage disposal:
– Solids
MAXIMUM: 1 oz (25 grams) – retail piece or applicable sub-sample
– Liquids
Chemicals, solvents, lubricants, oils, liquids with high petrochemical content – 1 mL (1 cc) per sample
Liquids with no volatile organic compounds (VOCs) – 10 mL (10 cc) per sample
1 mL glass micro-sample vial with a crimp top that has a Teflon-lined septum. The vial should only be ¼ – ½ full.
Make sure the vials have snap caps or any tight closure that will prevent leakage. You can also use vials found at this site. Wrap the vials 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 volatile liquids as the vapors can dissolve the glue and contaminate the sample during shipment.
NOTE: If the sample contains VOCs, the vial should be full (no head space).
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).
Results will only be representative of the actual material analyzed. Heterogenous materials should be discussed with the laboratory prior to analysis to ensure the sample is representative of the whole product.
ASTM D6866 requires carbonate components to be excluded from the biobased content result. Special procedures are required for materials containing carbonates. The lab needs to know if there are carbonates within your product and discussion must be pursued prior to analysis to ensure accurate results.
Contact the BioPreferred Program (biobasedtesting@im-strat.com) with any questions on testing samples with undetectable or encapsulated inorganic carbon.
Please email us the courier and tracking number.
Shipping address:
Beta Analytic Inc.
4985 SW 74th Court
Miami, Florida 33155
USA
Note: Beta is not responsible for the clearance or transportation costs of international shipments not sent through one of our forwarding offices. Shipments arranged through a freight forwarder must be sent under DDP terms. The shipper is responsible for handling the administrative requirements to release the shipment.
All hazardous materials (containing combustible elements) must adhere to International Air Transport Association (IATA) regulations; details can be found in the Fedex Packaging Dangerous Goods section.
Analyses are started immediately upon receipt of samples to best ensure we meet our promised delivery. This means that charges are also incurred immediately upon receipt of samples. Change orders are welcome, but please be aware that partial or full charges will apply based on how much work has been completed by the time of the change request.
Chemicals must include SDS/MSDS. We must have a copy on file. Please include it in the package to avoid delays. If we already have the latest version of an SDS on file for your product, please indicate so on your submittal form.
If you want to analyze the VOCs in your product, please consult us before shipping the sample. We can only analyze gases submitted as CO2 (either pure or in air mixtures).
Accurate analysis requires recovery of all available carbon within the product. If a biobased component is volatile and a petroleum component is not, the measured biobased content for the product will be too low if the volatiles are not recovered in the same proportion as the non-volatile petroleum components. Special procedures are readily applied to handle such samples but the laboratory needs to be aware of the need, e.g. evaporative hand sanitizers. Note that it is the submitter’s sole responsibility to provide the laboratory with this information.
Please take note that we do not have the facilities for handling or disposing of certain hazardous materials. As such, we cannot accept carcinogenic substances or materials requiring special disposal procedures. In the case of highly flammable or certain toxic materials (e.g. phenols), we can accept very small quantities such that disposal is not an issue. However, please contact us in advance of sending the samples to discuss on the appropriate amount to send.
A Beta representative will contact you to confirm the safe arrival of your samples in MIAMI and to quote you a delivery date for the results. Our quoted turnaround time starts following the day of receipt at the Miami laboratory excluding weekends.
Analyses are started immediately upon receipt of samples to best ensure we meet our promised delivery. This means that charges are also incurred immediately upon receipt of samples. Change orders are welcome, but please be aware that partial or full charges will apply based on how much work has been completed by the time of the change request.
Page last updated: May 2023
