The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has determined the food safety of plastic polyethylene terephthalate (PET) when produced by a recycling process called Poly Recycling for use in food contact materials.

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) recently highlighted various fellowship projects across Europe, providing insight into the recent and ongoing work of EFSA in the realm of food safety risk assessment for various chemical and microbiological hazards. 

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) will be reevaluating the health risks posed by phthalates and replacement plasticizers used in food contact materials, and has recently published its scientific protocol for the hazard assessment of the substances.

Scientists at Northwestern Medicine have demonstrated a causal link between di-(2-ethylhexyl) (DEHP), a phthalate commonly used in food packaging, and uterine fibroid growth.

After conducting a study on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) oversight of substances used in food contact materials, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommended that FDA request certain authorities from Congress in order to adequately review the safety of such substances.

There are significant knowledge gaps regarding the presence of nano- and microplastics in foods and their harmful effects on human health, according to a report from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

A recent study found that thousands of chemicals are present in food packaging for which the effects on human health have not been thoroughly studied.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has amended its food additive regulations and issued a request for information regarding phthalates in response to petitions requesting that FDA address the substances in food packaging and food contact surfaces

The European Union (EU) is currently evaluating its legislation on food contact materials (FCMs), which has identified safety concerns due to the lack of specific EU rules for most FCM types. This article takes a closer look at the status of these regulatory updates.