News
The Food Packaging Forum reports on recent developments across the food packaging and health field.
November 15, 2024
European Ombudsman submits formal recommendation to European Commission (EC) on risk management of chemicals; emphasizes EC repeatedly misses deadlines for regulating substances under REACH; finds decision-making process is not sufficiently transparent; conclude it to be maladministration
Reading time: 1 minute
November 14, 2024
VERMEER FCM tool allows modeling migration of organic chemicals from plastic food contact materials (FCMs), predicting selected toxicological endpoints, and comparing with European regulatory information; based on several in silico models; designed to assist risk assessment of FCMs; openly available
Reading time: 2 minutes
November 12, 2024
European Union Observatory for Nanomaterials (EUON) study reports nanomaterials in consumer products including food contact materials (FCMs) still on the rise; find “systematic” migration of nanoparticles from FCMs; silver studied the most; no general conclusions on toxicity; review identifies further research gaps and calls to advance regulatory framework to mitigate potential risks associated with nanoparticles in FCMs
Topics: nanomaterials, nanoparticles
Reading time: 5 minutes
November 8, 2024
Describes the function and properties of food packaging and the pros and cons of the different food contact materials in fulfilling them; calls for future research to investigate how repeated use affects the packaging’s mechanical performance and thermal stability
Topics: circular economy, reuse
Reading time: 3 minutes
November 7, 2024
On October 28, 2024, the Food Packaging Forum, in collaboration with ETH Zürich, held the first Swiss Symposium on Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs); throughout the day, leading experts shared the history of EDC research, as well as ongoing efforts to understand hazards and exposures associated with EDCs
Topics: Endocrine Disruptors
Reading time: 5 minutes
October 24, 2024
Article connects the dots between two global challenges: plastics and ultra-processed foods (UPFs); authors highlight how plastics have enabled the mass production of low-cost UPFs, leading to widespread health and environmental harms; emphasize that thousands of chemicals from plastic packaging migrate into food, many of which are hazardous and inadequately tested; urge joint efforts to tackle both issues, suggesting that addressing plastics and UPFs together could lead to more effective solutions
Reading time: 2 minutes
October 24, 2024
Scientists compile database on chemical features associated with plastic food packaging; comprises 2101 features compiled from scientific literature and own non-targeted analysis; of the 2101, 30% were found to migrate from 106 food packaging samples and approximately 78% detected in human serum samples
Reading time: 3 minutes
October 23, 2024
Commentary encourages scientists to integrate gender into their research on chemical pollution; study develops metric to interpret population biomonitoring data and assess potential health risks from multiple chemical exposure; can be used to compare population groups, including vulnerable ones
Topics: biomonitoring
Reading time: 3 minutes
October 22, 2024
Australian Government proposes packaging regulation reform; options are, (i) strengthening existing frameworks, (ii) imposing mandatory national standards, or (iii) implementing an extended producer responsibility scheme; aims to ban problematic chemicals and materials; public feedback until October 28, 2024; Australian state of New South Wales also consulting on a plastics plan until November 4, 2024
Reading time: 5 minutes
October 21, 2024
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announces significant changes to its Human Foods Program, aiming to streamline its operations and modernize field activities; changes reflect a renewed focus on transparency, efficiency, and consumer safety in food regulation
Reading time: 2 minutes
