News
The Food Packaging Forum reports on recent developments across the food packaging and health field.
April 6, 2021
Ball Corporation commissioned report compares recycling rates across US states for rigid plastics, glass, aluminum and steel cans, and cardboard for 2018; best overall recycling rates found for Maine (72%); results based on multiple data sources including US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), states, municipalities, waste processors; finds high recycling rates correlate with presence of deposit return systems, curb recycling, extended producer responsibility schemes
Reading time: 2 minutes
April 6, 2021
Event brings together EU government agencies, research institutions, stakeholders to discuss endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs); program includes presentations, panel discussions, advances in testing methods, actions on EDCs in the ‘Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability ‘
Reading time: 1 minute
March 31, 2021
‘Mind the Store’ campaign publishes updated report card scoring 50 major North American retailers on their actions to remove toxic chemicals from their products; finds improvement over last year in 70% of companies reviewed, focus has remained on eliminating per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), ortho-phthalates, and bisphenols from products
Reading time: 1 minute
March 31, 2021
Greenpeace Switzerland publishes statement and report, criticizes increasing focus on plastic collection and recycling; argues this misleads consumers, hinders implementation of reuse and extended producer responsibility, recommends providing necessary infrastructure, adaptation of logistics, implementing reuse and return models
Reading time: 1 minute
March 31, 2021
Life Cycle Initiative led by UN Environment publishes synthesis report investigating impacts of single-use plastic products through life cycle assessment (LCA) approach; finds concept of ‘single-use’ more problematic than ‘plastic’; encourages countries to promote and incentivize replacing single-use products with reusable products; keep products at highest value in economy for as long as possible
Reading time: 2 minutes
March 30, 2021
Article in PLOS Biology discusses hazardous chemicals in plastics; highlights chemicals as critical but often missing aspect in plastic pollution discussion; proposes rethinking current approach to plastic packaging toxicity testing
Reading time: 2 minutes
March 29, 2021
Journalist from The Guardian tests household items and his own blood for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination in partnership with the University of Notre Dame and the Silent Spring Institute; analysis confirms presence of four types of PFAS in blood serum, 15 household products, food packaging and cookware; identified substances include perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorohexane-1-sulphonic acid (PFHxS)
Topics: food packaging, PFAS
Reading time: 1 minute
March 26, 2021
Scientists from Ural Feral University publish study in Journal of Food Engineering ; develop three types of edible films for food packaging based on seaweed, alginate; describe films as water-soluble and dissolve by almost 90 percent, no special equipment needed to produce at industrial scale
Reading time: 0 minutes
March 26, 2021
Food packaging experts call for banning a new group of biodegradability promoting additives used in food packaging, cite concerns over uncontrollable degradation, migration of and human exposure to potentially hazardous chemicals; finds them distracting from real solutions such as new business models incorporating reuse
Reading time: 2 minutes
March 26, 2021
European Commission holds workshop with stakeholders to discuss criteria for chemicals that are Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD); implementation of EU’s Chemical Strategy for Sustainability (CSS) will depend on clear and implementable criteria for SSbD, amongst other central pillars such as essential use and generic risk assessment
Reading time: 3 minutes
