Scientists debate the urgency of research and actions on microplastics in the environment, present models to estimate accumulation of plastic debris and contaminants, assess risk of microplastics in the ocean
New EU rules on FCMs must be science based, simpler, and enforced
Food Packaging Forum comments on European Commission’s public consultation on its revision of EU rules on food contact materials (FCMs); stresses the importance of revising the definition of safety and aligning FCM regulations with EU strategies on chemical sustainability and circular economy
EU Commission’s Working Group on FCMs
EU Working Group on FCMs discusses BPA, amendments to EU 10/2011, mineral oil migration, authorization of recycling processes, migration testing guidelines
Belgium: Regulation on coatings
Belgium passes Royal Decree on varnishes and coatings intended to come into contact with foodstuffs
Formaldehyde and melamine migration from tableware
Italian scientists investigate migration of formaldehyde and melamine from children’s tableware made of melaware and other amino resins; specific and overall migration limits exceeded in some products; aging increases migration; migration cannot be predicted from product’s appearance
Hazards of food contact materials: Food packaging contaminants
Industry opposes update of phthalate authorization
European Plasticisers deems inclusion of endocrine disrupting properties of DEHP, DBP, BBP, DIBP in Authorization List ‘unnecessary overregulation’ that will put ‘excessive burdens’ on industry
Scientists identify most harmful food contact chemicals
Researchers led by the Food Packaging Forum (FPF) publish paper identifying 388 chemicals intentionally used in food contact materials (FCMs) that are harmful according to the EU’s Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability; 127 of these chemicals of concern have been measured to be present in FCMs including 30 monomers and 122 carcinogenic, mutagenic, or toxic to reproduction (CMR) chemicals
Review of endocrine disruptors in beverage packaging
Publication assesses over fifty studies on endocrine disrupting chemicals migrating from packaging into beverages; finds that material type, acidity, and storage impact migration rates; phthalates were most detected in polymer films, while bisphenol A was measured most in canned beverages
Threshold of Toxicological Concern (TTC) for risk assessment of food contact material chemicals
The Threshold of Toxicological Concern, short TTC, is a concept for assessing the risk of single chemical exposure to human health. It establishes generic exposure thresholds based on chemical structure below which chemicals are assumed to be safely used. In the absence of toxicological data, regulators, academic scientists and industry experts are using the TTC to perform chemical risk assessments. On October 17, 2013 the Food Packaging Forum held a workshop offering a platform for balanced information and scientific debate […]