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chemical safety

March 13, 2025

Food Packaging Forum (FPF) scientists submit comments to FDA’s public consultation; urge for comprehensive safety assessment using a hazard-based approach, systematic testing frameworks on groups of chemicals, and increasing transparency during all evaluation stages; call for clear separation between risk assessment and risk management; provide scientific resources
Reading time: 3 minutes

October 16, 2024

US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) hosts public meeting to discuss ways to improve post-market assessment process for chemicals in food; stakeholders, including researchers, advocates, and industry representatives, shared perspectives on transparency, safety, and the need for systematic evaluation; consultation open until December 6, 2024
Reading time: 2 minutes

September 19, 2024

Umbrella review analyzes 52 systematic reviews and 759 meta-analyses on plastic-associated chemicals and human health; bisphenols, phthalates, flame retardants, and PFAS were linked to adverse health effects; finds ties to reproductive issues, neurodevelopmental disorders, metabolic conditions, and cancers; research gaps remain, particularly microplastics and newer chemical groups
Reading time: 3 minutes

September 17, 2024

New research from the Food Packaging Forum looks at food contact chemicals (FCCs) that have been detected in humans; compares known FCCs with human biomonitoring programs, metabolome/exposome databases and the scientific literature; 3,601 FCCs have evidence of presence in humans, including chemicals with hazardous properties; comes with interactive dashboard to browse all data
Reading time: 2 minutes

September 2, 2024

European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) updates its guidelines for assessing PET recycling processes for materials intended for food contact; applicants must include information on collection, pre-processing, decontamination, post-processing, and intended use; potential dietary exposure of contaminants must not exceed 0.0025 μg/kg body weight per day
Reading time: 1 minute

July 26, 2024

Zero Waste Europe publishes brief highlighting problems with polyvinyl chloride in food contact applications; advocates for restrictions due to health concerns from additives and microplastics; another report supports ECHA’s findings on significant risks associated with PVC; European civil society organizations petition phase out strategies
Reading time: 2 minutes

June 6, 2024

European Joint Research Centre (JRC) publishes document to guide designers and assessors through the application of the voluntary Safe and Sustainable by Design framework; describes the steps of the framework, how to define system, frequently asked questions, and suggestions for where to find more information; following framework does not guarantee EU regulatory compliance; European Commission accepting feedback until August 30, 2024
Reading time: 1 minute
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