On Thursday, December 13, 2012, the French Senate definitively adopted the legal ban of bisphenol A (BPA) for food contact materials intended for children below 3 by early 2013, and for all food contact materials by January 2015 (Legal proposition N°49, Senate). After having been modified various times, the law was adopted in its second reading. The original text has been modified to include the ban of di (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) from pediatric, neonatology and maternity services by July 2015 and the ban of BPA from infant feeding bottles used in medical services, as defined in article L.5211-1 (in French). Previously, infant feeding bottles used in hospitals had not been covered by the European ban of BPA in feeding bottles.
France now has to notify the European Commission and the other member states of the EU. It has to specify its reasoning on why BPA and DEHP endanger human health to an extent that justifies additional legal steps not in accordance with general European community law (see art.18, EC 1935/2004). The European Commission will be advised in this matter by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and thereafter decide whether the French ban is scientifically justified or against the single market rule. If this was the case the Commission can take action against France, requiring it either to modify or remove the law. The EFSA’s scientific opinion on BPA is expected for May 2013.
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French Senate (in French)
Liberation (in French)
