Study analyzes non-volatile compounds migrating from nine different printed and non-printed paper straws into soda; identifies 19 chemicals in concentrations up to 3.6 mg/kg soda; chemicals include suspected carcinogen and endocrine disruptors; findings suggest paper straws are not a safer alternative to plastic straws
Safety of dishes made of wheat pulp or wood
Scientists analyze volatile compounds migrating from single-use dishes made of wheat pulp or wood; products considered safe for food contact use with respect to volatiles’ migration; migration of non-volatile substances and safety of high-temperature applications requires further study
Media coverage
The Food Packaging Forum in the media: a selection of articles
Prioritization of NIAS for risk assessment
Scientists propose strategy to prioritize non-intentionally added substances detected by non-targeted screening in paperboard FCMs for risk assessment based on exposure estimates and in silico predictions of toxicity
EU’s Chemicals Strategy plans actions on FCMs
European Commission (EC) publishes Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability; plans to ban PFAS for all non-essential uses, move towards grouping approach for regulation of all chemicals; specific actions for food contact materials (FCM) include extending generic approach to risk management, identifying endocrine disruptors, considering cumulative effects of chemical mixtures
Conference on residues of FCMs in food
Experts discussed future changes in the European legislation on FCMs, summarized state of the art in analytical chemistry and toxicity testing, and introduced novel techniques to measure and reduce chemical migration from FCMs into food
Webinar on analytics for food contact materials
American Chemical Society hosts webinar on analytical methods for food contact substances on April 28, 2016
EU Member States will evaluate 22 chemicals in 2017
ECHA adopts updated Community Rolling Action Plan for 2017-2019; 22 substances to be evaluated in 2017, of which 7 are relevant for food contact materials
BPA linked to prostate cancer
New study investigates effects of BPA exposure on human prostate cells, links BPA to prostate cancer
Recycling industry launches ‘RecyClass’ platform
Plastics Recyclers Europe introduces online tool ‘RecyClass’ to assess recyclability of plastic packaging, aims to combine knowledge of recyclers and packaging producers to improve packaging design for recycling