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Bisphenol A packaging ban brings challenges and concerns

A ban on bisphenol A (BPA), as well as other bisphenols used in so-called “food contact materials” (FCMs), came into force across the EU in January. What happens now?

In May 2023, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) proposed limits for BPA that were 20,000 times lower than before. The regulator concluded that the chemical compound, used widely in food and drink containers (or FCMs) from which it can migrate into food and beverages, has “potential harmful effects on the immune system”.

This had significant ramifications for food companies.

“The proposed threshold for BPA is so low its use in any metal packaging of food products is effectively banned,” noted coating producer AkzoNobel in a whitepaper on the topic. “Current estimates suggest the new legal requirements will impact upwards of 75% of European packaging volumes.”

Food fight: Re-evaluated limits may be ‘totally unrealistic’

One food safety expert told Ingredients Network at the time that the re-evaluated limits might be “totally unrealistic”, based on a previous study of BPA levels found in various ingredients in the US, including meat, vegetables, fats, and oils.

“We might end up with a piece of legislation which will make a large amount – if not all – of the food we eat deemed to be unfit for human consumption,” said Rob Kooijmans, CEO of the Food Strategy Institute, an Amsterdam-headquartered food safety consultancy.

Two years on and there is now a ban on BPA, as well as some other bisphenols used in FCMs. Based on “solid scientific advice”, the ban “will protect our consumers against harmful chemicals where they can come into contact with their food and drink”, said Oliver Várhelyi, commissioner for health and animal welfare.

There is an 18-month transition period until 20 July 2026 when BPA-based FCMs can still be used (and double that for packaging that preserves fruits, vegetables, and fish).

Only two other bisphenols, BPS and 2,2-bis (4-hydroxyphenyl)-4-methylpentane (which is not thought to be used in food contact materials), will fall under the ban as it stands, according to the Food Packaging Forum, a science communications organisation based in Zurich.

BPF and BPAF will also be banned, after both were identified as substances of very high concern (SVHCs) under REACH, the EU’s chemical regulations regime.

Bisphenol-free finances and caveats for coatings

Food and drink companies using BPA in their packaging and containers have already been switching to alternatives – or weighing up their options as the market moves to become BPA-free.

The alternatives are not the problem, warned AkzoNobel, which said it was the “shortage of experts to support food producers and packaging manufacturers transitioning […] in a way that […] does not create serious issues in the supply chain or impact on consumers” that has been causing concern.

Operations should soon begin at the company’s €32 million plant at Vilafranca del Penedès, Spain, to manufacture bisphenol-free coatings for metal packaging companies in the EMEA region.

Where there are no suitable alternatives, BPA can still be used as a starting substance in the manufacture of plastics and coatings, but migration into food must be at non-detectable level (which is 1 microgram per kg of food) and the finished packaging must be cleaned and flushed prior to being brought into food contact.

Worth noting, according to Jane Muncke at the Food Packaging Forum, is that the daily tolerable intake of BPA is around a thousand times below the non-detectable level, so “even if BPA is not detected, it may still be present in foods at unsafe levels”, she explained.

Substitutes scare

Loopholes in the new laws concern campaigning groups, as does the safety of the alternatives that are expected to flood the market.

One study, published in the journal Environmental International entitled “Exploring BPA alternatives – environmental levels and toxicity review”, warned: “These alternatives are already on the market, entering the environment and thus raising ecological concerns.”

Information on their environmental safety is “limited”, the researchers from across Europe added, which is concerning given that these are likely to “dominate” as use of BPA declines.

Health and environment campaigners have welcomed the BPA ban, but warn there is much to do.

For example, the Commission “still needs to solve the contamination by BPA and other bisphenols found in certain recycled materials”, said Dorota Napierska, policy officer at the NGO Zero Waste Europe.

Paper packaging manufacturers are also switching from BPA to BPS, but the new bans currently do not apply to this type of packaging.

Research carried out in Germany on pizza boxes from high-street chains showed that just one tested negative for both BPA and BPS. The box was from Pizza Hut, which uses fresh fibre for the outer layer instead of recycled. BPA and BPS migrated from the boxes in four (out of nine) and eight (out of eight) cases respectively.