US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) maintains May 2022 decision to deny citizen petition asking the agency to ban eight ortho-phthalates in food contact
Scientists estimate costs of phthalate-associated mortality
Scientific article evaluates mortality in relation to US adult phthalates exposure and quantifies costs; associates phthalate exposure with mortality stemming from all causes, cardiovascular mortality, and a societal cost of $39 to 47 billion per year
PFAS actions in three US states
California expected to pass bill banning PFAS in food packaging; Michigan legislators reintroduce bill to ban PFAS, phthalates, and bisphenols in food packaging; Massachusetts’ Toxics Use Reduction Act program votes for expanding reporting requirements
EFSA final scientific opinion on PFAS in food
European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) publishes final version of its opinion on risk to human health from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in food; sets group tolerable weekly intake limit of 4.4 ng/kg body weight for four most commonly measured PFAS in humans
Packaging stakeholder guidance on converting to reuse, using safer additives
Sustainable Packaging Coalition publishes guidance for converting to refillable or returnable packaging systems; CHEM Forward releases tool to help identify safer additives to use in plastic packaging
Study finds microplastics impact colon cancer cells, could increase metastasis
Study of colon cancer cell lines finds polystyrene micro and nanoplastic particles (MNPs) can be absorbed into cancerous cells in experimental settings; the more aggressive cell line absorbed the most MNPs and presence of MNPs increased cell movement; evidence of persistence and bioaccumulation; authors argue MNPs fit criteria as substance of concern under REACH
Cyclic oligomer migration is higher from recycled than virgin PET, study finds
Scientists assessed polyethylene terephthalate (PET) trays with different amounts of recycled content and produced by two different extrusion processes; find cyclic oligomer migration increases with recycled content amount, differs between the two processes; nontargeted screening identifies intentional and non-intentional substances, including marker compounds for recycled PET
FPF Workshop 2020: Work of IARC explained
Kate Guyton reviews the work of International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), underlines the essential role played by independent scientific experts, describes processes used for evidence synthesis and carcinogen classification; key characteristics of carcinogens constitute an important approach to cancer hazard identification
Chemicals in Plastic Packaging: Challenges for Regulation and the Circular Economy
Chronic PS nanoplastics exposure found to impact mitochondrial health, impairing cell metabolism
New study examines long-term effects of polystyrene (PS) nanoplastics on mitochondrial health under realistic exposure conditions; repeated exposure to PS nanoplastics impaired mitochondrial function and cell differentiation process, possibly linked to metabolic disorders, such as diabetes and obesity; other recent studies found that PS micro- and nanoplastics negatively affect immune function, pregnancy outcomes, and gut health in various models