Eurofins | Newsflash - March 2018 | Food Contact Materials

Europe 

9th Amendment for Plastic Materials and Articles in Contact with Food

On 19 January 2018, the European Commission published Regulation (EU) 2018/79 amending Regulation (EU) No 10/2011 on plastic materials and articles intended to come into contact with food.

The main points of this amendment are:
 

 
Plastic materials and articles complying with Regulation (EU) No 10/2011 as applicable before the entry into force of this new Regulation may be placed on the market until 8 February 2019 and may remain on the market until exhaustion of stocks.
 
Click here for getting the official publication.

Europe 

Nanomaterials Public Consultation by EFSA This year EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) has opened a public consultation on the draft “Guidance on the risk assessment of the application of nanoscience and nanotechnologies in the food and feed chain: Part 1, human and animal health” Public comments are opened until 4 March 2018 Click here for getting the draft document

Europe 

Amendment on the Use of Bisphenol A in Varnishes and Coatings

On 12 February 2018, the European Commission published Regulation (EU) 2018/213 on the use of bisphenol A (BPA) in varnishes and coatings intended to come into contact with food and amendingRegulation (EU) No 10/2011 as regards the use of that substance in plastic food contact materials
Main highlights of this new Regulation:

• Lowers Specific migration limit for BPA from 0.6 mg/kg to 0.05 mg/kg.
• Extends the ban from 2011 on the use of BPA in polycarbonate baby bottles by prohibiting the use of BPA to manufacture infant 'sippy' cups (as described in the text of the Regulation: “polycarbonate drinking cups or bottles which, due to their spill proof characteristics, are intended for infants and young children”)
• No migration of BPA permitted from varnishes or coatings applied to materials and articles intended to come into contact with food for infants and children 0–3 year old (infant, young children and baby food or milk-based drinks and similar products as referred to in Regulation (EU) No 609/2013)

This new Regulation shall apply from 6 September 2018. Varnished or coated materials and articles and plastic materials and articles lawfully placed on the market before 6 September 2018 may remain on the market until exhaustion of stocks

Click here for getting the official publication.

Questions & Answers document on BPA from the EU Commission can be found here

Europe 

Plastic and Circular Economy

The European Commission has adopted a strategy concerning plastic materials which is established as a part of the transition towards a more circular economy. It’s expected that all plastic packaging on the EU market will be recyclable by 2030, the single-use plastic consumption will be reduced, and the intentional use of micro-plastics will be limited.

Click here to access the European Commission Press release

France

Guideline for Food Contact Suitability of Metals and Alloys In the absence of a specific regulatory text, the DGCCRF (“Direction générale de la concurrence, de la consommation et de la repression des fraudes”) has drafted guidance sheets for various types of materials. They are primarily intended for official control departments and laboratories. The Metals and Alloys document, published on 26 January 2018 on the DGCCRF website, specifies the means for verifying their food contact suitability, and more specifically the means for verifying the principle of inertia set out in Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 October 2004. Click here for getting the French official version. Click here for getting the English version.

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