Several groups have come together to petition FDA to remove or restrict its approvals of bisphenol A (BPA) in adhesives and coatings, and to establish stringent limits on its use in food packaging.
“Given this new data points to the significant health risks associated with BPA, it is critical that the FDA set a maximum limit of BPA in food that is safe for consumers,” said Michael Hansen, senior scientist at Consumer Reports in a press release. “The constant exposure consumers have to BPA in food could pose an unacceptable danger and increases the likelihood of harmful outcomes, such as limiting brain development in children and negatively impacting reproductive health, so it is essential those levels be reduced to an acceptable level.”
BPA is found in many plastics used in food containers, pitchers, tableware and storage containers. Studies have shown that small amounts of BPA can migrate from food packaging and containers into foods and beverages. In addition, the European Food Safety Authority recently released findings that the harmful effects of BPA exposure can occur at levels 100,000 lower than previously thought—and potentially 5000 times lower than what FDA states most Americans are exposed to, according to a release from the Environmental Defense Fund, one of the groups that filed the petition. Other petitioners include Breast Cancer Prevention Partners, Clean Water Action/Clean Water Fund, Consumer Reports, Endocrine Society, Environmental Working Group, Healthy Babies Bright Futures, Dr. Maricel Maffini, and Dr. Linda Birnbaum, former director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and National Toxicology Program.
“FDA has an obligation to protect us from toxic chemicals that can come in contact with our food,” said Maffini, scientist and coauthor of the petition. “These new findings should be a wakeup call to the FDA and all of us that our health is in jeopardy unless we take swift action to limit the amount of BPA that can come into contact with our food.”
FDA’s content related to use of BPA in food contact applications was last updated in June 2018. The agency has not yet released a response to the petition.