Class 1: Chemical Products
Class 1 is where the raw ingredients of other industries sit: industrial and scientific chemicals, fertilisers and compost, industrial adhesives, unprocessed resins and plastics. It’s one of the quieter classes, the 33rd most used of the 45, with 11,031 UK registrations between September 2021 and September 2026, which is about 65% fewer registrations than the average class. Less crowding is good news for a new name. The catch is that “chemical” sounds like it should all live here, and a lot of it doesn’t.
What class 1 covers
This is the official Nice heading, in full:
Chemicals for use in industry, science and photography, as well as in agriculture, horticulture and forestry; unprocessed artificial resins, unprocessed plastics; fire extinguishing and fire prevention compositions; tempering and soldering preparations; substances for tanning animal skins and hides; adhesives for use in industry; compost, manures, fertilisers; biological preparations for use in industry and science.
Read it as a list of things that go into a process rather than things a consumer buys to use as they are. A fertiliser feeds a crop, an industrial adhesive bonds a component, a resin becomes a moulding. The words that do the work are “for use in industry” and “for use in science”. Once a product is finished and aimed at a household, a patient or a painter, it usually belongs in another class.
When you definitely need class 1
- You make or sell fertilisers, compost, soil improvers or growing media under your own brand
- You supply industrial, laboratory or photographic chemicals
- You produce adhesives for trade, construction or manufacturing use, such as tile adhesives or industrial epoxies
- You make unprocessed resins or plastics sold as liquids, powders or granules
- You make fire extinguishing compositions, soldering preparations or biological preparations for industry
When you might need class 1 without realising
Class 1 turns up in businesses that don’t think of themselves as chemical companies at all.
- Garden and horticulture brands. Compost, potting soil, plant feed and biostimulants are all class 1. A garden centre with its own-label compost has a class 1 product whether it calls it that or not.
- Construction product brands. Tile adhesive is class 1 (125 recent registrations use exactly that wording), even though the tiles themselves are class 19.
- Food and drink producers with a technical side. Chemical substances for preserving foodstuffs is class 1, claimed on 288 recent registrations.
- Biotech and lab-services start-ups. A named reagent kit sold for research use is a class 1 product, separate from the research service in class 42.
The common thread is a product sold to someone who’ll use it to make or grow something else.
Not sure whether your product is an ingredient or a finished product? The free class tools below will show you where businesses like yours actually file, or you can call us.
What businesses actually claim in class 1
These are the terms that turn up most often in recent UK class 1 registrations:
| Term | Marks using it | Share of class 1 | How common |
|---|---|---|---|
| fertilisers | 827 | 7.5% | Recommended |
| adhesives for use in industry | 453 | 4.1% | Recommended |
| biological preparations for use in industry and science | 403 | 3.7% | Some use this |
| compost, manures, fertilisers | 388 | 3.5% | Some use this |
| tempering and soldering preparations | 373 | 3.4% | Some use this |
| industrial chemicals | 363 | 3.3% | Some use this |
| unprocessed artificial resins, unprocessed plastics | 345 | 3.1% | Some use this |
| organic fertilisers | 316 | 2.9% | Some use this |
| chemical substances for preserving foodstuffs | 288 | 2.6% | Some use this |
| unprocessed plastics | 282 | 2.6% | Some use this |
Fertilisers lead the class, on 827 registrations, and once you add compost, manures, organic fertilisers and plant nutrients, horticulture and agriculture account for a big slice of class 1. That’s worth knowing if you’re in that market: it’s where most of your competition in this class is filing.
Look at how precise the adhesive wording is. It isn’t “adhesives”, it’s adhesives for use in industry, on 453 registrations. The qualifier is doing real work, because an adhesive sold to households or offices sits in a different class altogether.
What class 1 does not cover
Finished paints and varnishes are class 2. A coatings business can register its industrial chemicals in class 1 and still leave the product on the shelf unprotected. Paints appears on 917 recent registrations in class 2 and varnishes on 471. Raw natural resins sit in class 2 as well; only the unprocessed artificial ones are class 1.
Reagents for medical or veterinary diagnosis move to class 5. The same laboratory supplier can have products on both sides of this line. A reagent for scientific research is class 1; diagnostic preparations for medical purposes, on 585 class 5 registrations, are not. The intended use decides it, not the chemistry.
Once a plastic has been shaped, it’s usually class 17. Resin in granules or liquid form is class 1. Sheets, rods, films and extrusions for further manufacture are class 17, where plastics in extruded form for use in manufacture is claimed on 290 registrations. A resin producer that also sells semi-finished stock needs both.
Finished building materials are class 19. A construction chemicals brand selling admixtures and adhesives is class 1, but if the range grows into cement (396 class 19 registrations) or mortar (120), those products sit in class 19.
Where these terms actually live
| Term | Belongs to | Marks using it |
|---|---|---|
| paints | Class 2 | 917 |
| varnishes | Class 2 | 471 |
| herbicides | Class 5 | 924 |
| pesticides | Class 5 | 882 |
| diagnostic preparations for medical purposes | Class 5 | 585 |
| adhesives for stationery or household purposes | Class 16 | 3,522 |
| plastics in extruded form for use in manufacture | Class 17 | 290 |
| cement | Class 19 | 396 |
| mortar | Class 19 | 120 |
Each of these is a separate registration. A mark in class 1 does not cover any of them.
The mistake I see most often
The mistake is treating anything that sounds like a chemical as class 1. The class is for industrial, scientific and agricultural inputs. Plenty of finished products that are, strictly speaking, chemicals live somewhere else entirely.
Two examples show how far apart they can be. Weedkillers and pesticides feel like they belong next to fertiliser, but they’re class 5, where herbicides appears on 924 registrations and pesticides on 882. Glue feels like one product, but adhesives for stationery or household purposes is class 16, and it’s claimed far more often there (3,522) than any adhesive term is in class 1.
The cost of getting this wrong is that the registration looks fine and doesn’t protect the product you actually sell. The way round it is simple: describe the product by who uses it and what for, then check the class against that description rather than against the word “chemical”.
Is class 1 the right class for you?
If your product is an input, something another business or grower uses to make, treat or grow something else, class 1 is very likely yours. If it’s finished and sold to the end user, check the neighbouring classes before you file.
Our free class tools build a specification from wording already accepted on real UK filings, so you can see what businesses like yours claim before you commit.
Common questions about class 1
Is compost class 1 or class 31?
Compost, potting soil and growing media are class 1. Class 31 is for living and natural agricultural products: live plants, seeds, bulbs and animal feed. A garden brand selling both its own compost and its own seeds or plants would usually need both classes.
Which class is glue in if I sell it to the public?
It depends who it’s for. Adhesives for industry, including trade products like tile adhesive, are class 1. Glue sold for household or stationery use is class 16. Glue for false eyelashes or nails is class 3. The wording on your specification needs to match the product you’re actually putting on the shelf.
Do fire extinguishers go in class 1?
No, only the compositions inside them. Fire extinguishing and fire prevention compositions are class 1. The extinguisher itself, the apparatus, is class 9. A business selling both refills and the units needs both classes.
Is antifreeze class 1?
Yes. Antifreeze is listed in class 1, alongside other chemical preparations used in engines and industrial systems. Lubricants and fuels aren’t, though. They’re class 4, so a motor fluids brand often ends up needing both.
About these figures. Last researched 23 September 2026, from UK trademarks registered between September 2021 and September 2026 whose entry in this class is still active. That is current drafting practice rather than the historical register. Terms shown are those most frequently used in that period.
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