EU publishes annual report of its rapid alert system for food and feed (RASFF); 119 notifications related to food contact materials, 34 classified as serious health risks requiring immediate action
EFSA assesses 2 substances for intelligent and active FCMs
EFSA’s CEF Panel considers basic copper (II) carbonate and citric acid with sodium hydrogen carbonate safe for use in intelligent and active food contact materials under certain conditions
California consults on 22 chemicals under Proposition 65
State’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) calls for information related to exposure and hazard identification; includes bisphenol S, PFAS, parabens, titanium dioxide nanoparticles; comments accepted until December 10, 2020
ANSES prioritizes substances for EDC assessment
French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety (ANSES) releases list of substances of very high concern, assessment tool for identification of endocrine disruptors (EDCs); found 906 chemicals of concern, 16 substances of high priority; aim to accelerate identification and chemical assessment of EDCs part of Second National Endocrine Disruptor Strategy (SnPE 2)
Research defines PFAS planetary boundary and calculates human health costs
Scientists suggest per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in environmental media represent a new planetary boundary that has been exceeded; calculate that regulatory action on PFAS use and remediation may provide substantial economic benefits through reduction of health-related costs
Alerts for heavy metal migration from food packaging
European Commission publishes new report of the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed, heavy metal migration identified as central issue
Chinese safety authority approves three polymers for FCMs, with caveats
China’s National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment seeks comments from industry on restricting the use of three polymer paints and coatings in food contact materials for infants and children
Widespread presence of organophosphate esters in plastic and paper FCMs
Scientists perform suspect and non-target analysis of organophosphate esters (OPEs) in 100 food contact materials (FCMs) in Southern China; identify 28 OPEs of which 18 were identified for the first time; find organophosphate antioxidants as one OPE source
Local U.S. ban on PFASs in food packaging
State of Washington foresees ban on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in food packaging by 2021 if safer alternatives can be identified
EU Member States adopt EDC criteria
EU Member States vote in favor of European Commission-proposed criteria to identify endocrine disruptors in the field of plant protection products; both industry and NGOs view adopted criteria as ‘flawed,’ call on European Parliament to veto the proposal