EU Commission releases proposal for EU directive on reducing marine litter; reduced consumption, market restrictions, redesign suggested for certain single-use plastic items; public consultation open until July 24, 2018
Concerns over mineral oils
German TV station airs report on unpublished EFSA document; toxicological consequences of mineral oil exposure allegedly exceed previous assumptions; expert recommends “drastic reduction” of exposure
EFSA opinions on 10 recycling processes
European Food Safety Authority’s CEP Panel publishes scientific opinions on 10 recycling processes for post-consumer PET; all found to be safe for use in specified food contact applications
Special issue on EDCs and behavior
Special issue of peer-reviewed journal Hormones and Behavior focuses on endocrine disrupting chemicals’ effects on behavior; articles address molecular mechanisms, animal studies and epidemiological observations, discuss specific chemicals including BPA, triclosan, PBDEs, PFASs
EU Member States to risk-assess 117 substances in 2017-2019
ECHA and EU Member States propose list of 117 substances to be evaluated for risk to human health and environment; list features 4 substances relevant for FCMs
Plastic recycling: company commitments and chemical safety challenges
Scientists report most large companies commit to reducing plastic pollution but focus on recycling; extrusion of recycled materials and legacy compounds in recycled materials as safety challenge; some substances increase others decrease with the increase in recycled content in polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles; tentatively identify 212 volatile chemicals in 57 different recycled PET flakes available in China; present migration model to characterize the exposure and risk of PET oligomers
New Plastics Economy: Global commitment report
New Plastics Economy initiative of Ellen MacArthur Foundation launches its first Global Commitment report detailing industry and government progress on tackling plastic pollution
EU agreement on single-use plastics
EU Council and Parliament provisionally agree on new Directive restricting several single-use plastic products, including cutlery, plates, straws, certain food and beverage containers
REACH debate at EU Parliament
Members of EU Parliament react to German study showing a third of REACH registrations non-compliant; calls for publicizing the list of infringing companies, more efficient dossier evaluation, stricter enforcement
EFSA updates independence policy
EFSA publishes revised independence policy including new elements to avoid conflicts of interest; NGO remains critical of EFSA’s ties to food industry