Innovations improving the safety of food contact articles discussed during afternoon session; panel with guests from academia, non-profit organizations, start-ups and industry
EFSA publishes guidance on chemical grouping for risk assessments
Final version of European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) guidance prioritizes hazard-driven criteria for grouping chemicals; supports human health risk assessments of combined chemical exposures; recommends relying on mechanistic information on toxicity within a weight-of-evidence approach
Industry survey on glass packaging and consumers
European Container Glass Federation (FEVE) reports results from recent survey on European consumers; finds increase in glass packaging purchases, decisions being driven increasingly by recyclability and environmental considerations
Politico presents concerns about the US FDA
Politico reports the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) lacks clear leadership managing food safety in the country, leading to delays and impacting the health of those living in the US; Environmental Working Group study finds nearly 99% of food chemicals added to the US market since 2000 were introduced through the generally recognized as safe (GRAS) rule
Chemical metabolism in young and elderly
Scientists review studies demonstrating differences in drug pharmacokinetics between young and elderly people, recommend use of varying uncertainty factors for acceptable daily exposure calculations due to sensitivity differences
FPF webinar on reprotoxic food contact chemicals
Register now for the Food Packaging Forum’s webinar on food contact chemical surfynol and its reprotoxic properties that will be held on March 27, 2018
Label for ‘plastic-free’ food packaging
Campaign group introduces product label for ‘plastic-free’ food and drink packaging; retailers Iceland and Ekoplaza, tea brand teapigs to adopt label
From scientific evidence to policy
Journal PLOS Biology publishes special edition on the effects of chemical exposures on public and environmental health; addresses gap between scientific understanding and regulation of chemicals
Two studies associate microplastic exposure with cancer
Review of occupational health studies finds workplace exposure to polyvinyl chloride (PVC) particles likely induces liver carcinogenicity; research study finds polystyrene nanoplastics to speed up ovarian cancer development in mice
Nanoparticles in FCMs: Benefits and limitations
Scientists discuss the use of nanoparticles in food packaging materials, focusing on gaps in knowledge on their migration, toxicity, influence on biopolymer degradability