DEAS  840: 2023  
ICS 71.100.70  
 
© EAC 2023                                                                                                                          Second  Edition 2023   
 DRAFT EAST AFRICAN STANDARD  
Shaving cream  — Specification  
EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY  DEAS  840: 2023  
ii © EAC  2023  – All rights reserved  
 Copyright notice  
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Violators may be prosecuted . DEAS  840: 2023  
© EAC 2023  – All rights reserved  iii 
 Foreword  
Development of the East African Standards has been  necessi tated by the need for harmonizing requirements 
governing quality of products and services in the East African Community. It is envisaged that through 
harmonized standardization, trade barriers that are encountered when goods and services are exchan ged 
within the Community will be removed.  
The Community has established an East African Standards Committee  (EASC)  mandated to develop and 
issue East African Standards  (EAS) . The Committee is composed of representatives of the National 
Standards Bodies in  Partner  States, together with the representatives from the public and private sector 
organizations  in the community .  
East African Standards are developed through  Technical Committees that are representative of key 
stakeholders including government, acade mia, con sumer groups, private sector and other interested parties. 
Draft East African Standards are circulated to stakeholders through the National Standards Bodies in the 
Partner States. The comments received are discussed and incorporated before finaliza tion of standards, in 
accordance with the Principles and procedures for development of East African Standards. XXXXXX.  
East African Standards are subject to review, to keep pace with technological advances. Users of the East 
African Standards are therefore  expecte d to ensure that they always have the latest versions of the standards 
they are implementing .  
The committee responsible for this document is Technical Committee EASC/TC 071, Cosmetics and cosmetic 
products . 
Attention is drawn to the possibility th at some of the elements of this document may be subject of patent 
rights. EAC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.  
This second  edition cancels and replaces the first edition ( EAS 840:2017 ), which has been technically  revised. DEAS  840: 2023  
iv © EAC  2023  – All rights reserved  
 Introduction  
Shaving creams play an important role in the wetting and softening of the beard, when applied prior to 
shaving, thereby ensuring a smooth shave. The creams hold the hair erect for cutting (lathering type) or 
lubricate the beard (bru shless t ype).  
 
 DRAFT EAST AFRICAN STANDARD  DEAS  840:2023  
 
© EAC 2023 – All rights reserved  1 
 Shaving cream — Specification  
1 Scope   
This Draft East African Standard specifies the requirements, sampling and test methods for shaving creams.  
2 Normative references   
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes 
requir ements of this document.  For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, 
the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.  
EAS 346, Labelling of cosmeti c — General requirements  
EAS 377 (all par ts), Cosmetics and cosmetic products  
EAS 846, Glossary of terms relating to the cosmetic industry  
EAS 847 -7, Cosmetics — Analytical methods — Part 7: Determination of specific gravity  
EAS 847 -16, Cosmetics — Analytical methods — Part 16: Determination o f lead, mercury and arsenic  
EAS 847 -17, Cosmetics — Analytical methods — Part 17: Determination of pH  
EAS 847 -18, Cosmetics — Analytical methods — Part 18: Determination of thermal stability  
EAS 847 -20, Cosmetic s — Analytical methods — Part 20: Determin ation of lather volume (foaming power)  
EAS 847 -27, Cosmetics — Analytical methods — Part 27: Determination of total fatty substance by 
gravimetric method  
EAS 847 -28, Cosmetics — Analytical methods Part 28: Determ ination of free caustic alkali   
ISO 18416,  Cosmetics — Microbiology — Detection of Candida albicans  
ISO 21150, Cosmetics — Microbiology — Detection of Escherichia coli  
ISO 22717 , Cosmetics — Microbiology — Detection of Pseudomonas aeruginosa   
ISO 22718, Cosmetics — Microbiology — Detection of Sta phylococcus aureus  
ISO 24153, Random sampling and randomisation procedures  
3 Terms and definitions   
For the purposes of this standard, the terms and definitions given in EAS 846 shall apply.  
ISO and IEC maintain t erminological databases for use in standar dization at the following addresses:   
2 © EAC  2023  – All rights reserved  
 — ISO Online browsing platform: available at http://www.iso.org/obp  
4 Types  
Shaving cream shall be of the following types  : 
a) Type 1: lather ing, soap based (to be used with brush); and  
b) Type 2: brushless.  
5 Requirements  
5.1 Ingredients  
5.1.1  All ingredients including dyes, pigment and colour sha ll comply with EAS 377.  
5.1.2  The ingredients used shall basically be soaps composed of sodium or pot assium stearates for Type 1, 
and mineral oil or other suitable ingredients in excess of stearic acid for Type 2.  
5.2 General requirements  
5.2.1  Shaving cream shall  
a) be uniform in texture;  
b) not be sticky when pulled out between thumb and forefinger; and  
c) not be of objectionable odour.  
5.2.2  For Type 1, the foam (lather) shall be uniform.  
5.3 Specific requirements  
Shaving cream shall comply with the specific req uirements given in Table 1 when tested in accordance with 
the test methods specified therein .  
© EAC 2023  – All rights reserved  3 
 Table 1 — Specific requirements for shaving creams  
S/N. Characteristic  Requirement  Test method  
 Type 1  Type 2  
i.  pH at 25 ºC ± 2 ºC, range  7 - 10  6 - 8.5  EAS 847 -17 
ii.  Thermal stability  To pass test  To pass test  EAS 847 -18 
iii.  Total fatty substance, % m/m, m in. 30 20 EAS 847 -27  
iv.  Lathering (foaming power), mL, min.  100 n/a EAS 847 -20 
v.  Free caustic alkali To pass test  To pass test  EAS 847 -28 
vi.  Specific gravity, at 25 ºC ± 2 ºC, min.  0.9  0.9 EAS 847 -7 
5.4 Heavy metal contaminants  
Shaving cream  shall compl y with the limits for heavy metal cont aminants in accordance with Table 2 when 
tested in accordance with the test methods specified  therein.  
Table 2 — Heavy metal limits for  shaving cream  
S/N  Heavy metal  Maximum limit a mg/kg  Test method  
i  Lead,  10  
EAS 847-16 ii Arsenic  2 
iii Mercury  2 
a The total amount of heavy metals as lead, mercury and arsenic, in combination in the finished product shall not exceed 10 m g/kg 
 
5.5 Microbiological requirement s 
Shaving cream shall comply with the microbiology l imits specified in Table 3 when tested  in accordance to the 
methods described therein . 
Table 3 — Microbiology limits  for shaving cream  
S/N  Characteristic.   Requirement  Test method  
i.  Total viable count, cfu/g, max   100 ISO 21149  
ii.  Staphylococcus aureus  (per g)   Not detected  ISO 22718  
iii.  Pseu domonas aeruginosa  (per g)   Not detected  ISO 22717  
iv.  Candida albicans  (per g)   Not detected  ISO 18416  
v.  Escherichia coli  (per g)   Not detected  ISO 21150  
6 Packaging  
Shaving  cream  shall be packaged in suitable well-sealed containers that shall protect the contents and shall 
not cause any contamination or react with the pro ducts.   
4 © EAC  2023  – All rights reserved  
 7 Labelling  
In addition, to the label ling requirements given in EAS 346, each package shall be legibly and indelibly marked 
with the following:  
a) product name as “ Shaving cream ”; and  
b) type 
8 Sampling  
Sampling shall be done in accordance with I SO 24153   
© EAC 2023  – All rights reserved  5 
 Bibliography  
EAS 840: 2017 , Shaving cream — Specificat ion 
 DEAS  840: 2023    
 
© EAC 2023  – All rights reserved