State of California holds point-of-sale warnings for food cans and bottles containing BPA in place until the end of 2017; manufacturers must list affected products in online database
Food contact related European food alerts in 2012
2012 report on European rapid alerts of enforcement authorities shows slightly less food contact related notifications compared to 2011, Chinese imports of particular concern
European Parliament calls for reduced material use, better ecodesign
European Parliament approves report calling for European Commission to adopt binding targets and expanded EcoDesign Directive within Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP), aims to reduce overall consumption and material use; proposes solutions to problems of higher prices for recycled materials and low availably of high-quality recycled materials
FDA updating FCM risk assessment
ILSI North America holds first public food packaging conference; several FDA speakers shared updates from ongoing work in pre- and post-market FCM risk assessment
Most chemicals remain untested
Report by the Center for Effective Government reveals that less than 1% of chemicals on the U.S. market are tested for safety
JRC report on nanomaterial identification
European Commission Joint Research Centre (JRC) publishes report with guidance on measurement techniques to identify nanomaterials under the EU definition; includes practical examples and flowchart to support analysis
US action plan to prevent infertility
US government agency publishes action plan to prevent infertility; aims to reduce exposure to EDCs
More eco-friendly takeaway containers
Bangkok Post informs about a community campaign encouraging food vendors in Bangkok to use bio-based, biodegradable food containers instead of styrofoam and other plastic packaging
UK to stick with EU FCM legislation
UK will adopt EU FCM framework regulation and material-specific regulations after leaving EU; situation for non-harmonized FCMs under debate
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