Pepsin (CAS 9001-75-6): storage and disposal

Because pepsin may cause allergy or asthma symptoms or breathing difficulties if inhaled, the jar's lid and the room it sits in matter more than the shelf height. Keep it in a tightly closed, labelled container in a dry store, away from food and drink areas, and handle it where dust cannot drift into the room. On a histology bench, it often sits near digestion reagents and acids, so check that the jar has not been shoved against bottles that leak. A school prep room should keep it out of reach of pupils. Date it on arrival.

Look for what normally appears and then what does not. A jar of normal powder is dry and loose. A jar that has been left open or stored in damp conditions clumps, cakes or looks sticky. Enzymes can lose activity with no visible change, so a clean looking jar may still be useless. Dust around the cap, a split label and a lid that no longer seals are the practical warning signs. Record the condition and the label, and do not open a caked jar or tap powder out.

We arrange this by specialist collection. We do not publish a drain or general waste route for any chemical. It is normally packed in a general laboratory pack with compatible chemicals.

The powder is grouped and packed with other solid laboratory chemicals in a lab pack, and described by its irritant and inhalation classifications. Waste code 16 05 06* usually fits a laboratory chemical, with 18 01 06* usual for a histology or healthcare holder. Because breathing in dust is the classified concern, the jar stays closed, nobody should tip it out to tidy the load, and it must not go into a drain or general waste. Give the label wording, any caking and the approximate quantity when requesting collection.

Usually held as: solid.

Tell us the container size and how many you hold. An estimate is enough to start with, and some items cannot be priced until someone has looked at them.