Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Plastics Pact network expands to include US Plastics Pact collaborative with over 60 signatories
Opinion: Plastic packaging should be simplified
Cradle to Cradle scientist Michael Braungart calls for fewer and simplified polymers to create material cycles rather than waste
BfR warns against contaminants from azo dyes in FCMs
German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment measures migration of 4 chemicals associated with azo dyes in paper food contact materials; finds migration levels to exceed estimated safe intake levels; recommends materials containing the substances be avoided until more toxicity data available
Beyond BPA – Many bisphenols migrate from food packaging
Four studies investigate bisphenol (BP) migration from food packaging and human health effects; demonstrate wide presence of 11 bisphenols in polystyrene take-out food containers from China, Canada, and Poland; report material quality influences BPA migration from polycarbonate cups; indicate higher BPA migration from lined cans than plastic packaging into meat based on probabilistic models; find bisphenols A, F, and S induce genotoxic effects and changes in human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) expression using human blood cells
Carcinogenicity of ‘cocktails’ highlighted
Series of new studies finds mixtures of everyday non-carcinogenic chemicals to be of concern for causing cancer; individual chemicals present at low levels; opportunity for improvement of chemical risk assessment and primary prevention of cancer
EC launches circular plastics alliance
EU Commission launches Circular Plastics Alliance to support EU plastics strategy; industry stakeholders to cover entire plastics value chain
FDA decision on perchlorate postponed
NGOs and FDA request to pause court case concerning perchlorate petition; FDA aims to reach final decision on use of perchlorate in food packaging by March 2017
Label for ‘plastic-free’ food packaging
Campaign group introduces product label for ‘plastic-free’ food and drink packaging; retailers Iceland and Ekoplaza, tea brand teapigs to adopt label
Phthalate exposure and health impacts
Four scientific articles report on phthalate exposure sources and impacts; diet partly explains urinary phthalate levels in adolescents and children surveyed in the US and New Zealand; review of reviews summarizes human health impacts; finds studies on women “generally underrepresented”; study indicates three phthalates affect human oral health
Where do collected recyclables go?
New York Times addresses China’s ban on waste imports, illustrates impacts on recycling programs in the U.S. and globally