Stefan Merkel presents recent work of German Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR); Lisa Zimmermann discusses bioassay-based toxicity assessment of conventional plastics, bioplastics, and plant-based materials; Andrew Turner emphasizes presence of toxic brominated flame retardants in recycled plastics, uses of hazardous heavy metals in colored decorations applied to glass articles
US government and stakeholders debate how to improve recycling
US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sets target national recycling rate of 50% by 2030; stakeholders identify recycling data gaps as key limitation; call for new national standards and legislation improving reporting, use of recycled content; upcoming changes in government administration create uncertainty
EFSA conference 2018: Human health
Presentations at EFSA conference 2018 address advances and challenges in human health risk assessment; NTP official confirms that there will be a third CLARITY-BPA report integrating academic and regulatory studies
Sustainable future without EDCs
US scientists propose a sustainable approach towards chemical safety assessments in order to protect future generations from EDC exposures
Studying chemical mixtures
Workshop challenges scientists to analyze epidemiological data and develop appropriate statistical methods to assess effects of exposure to chemical mixtures
Reusable food packaging and novel coronavirus
UPSTREAM encourages consumers to continue using reusable items with regular washing using soap, expects zero-waste efforts and bring-your-own container programs to further gain momentum after pandemic ends; expanded business models needed to promote sanitizing and reusing packaging
Nestlé launches replacement paper wrapping
Paper with water-based coating replaces polypropylene film for wrapping snack bars, high-throughput process can flow wrap 500 snack bars per minute, guarantees shelf life equal to that of plastic alternative
Intelligent packaging: Applications overview
Scientists review basic principles and market applications of intelligent food packaging; discuss the obstacles to a broader market penetration
FCMs topic at EU parliamentary committee
EU Parliament’s Environment Committee exchanges views with the EU Commission on the regulation of food contact materials, requests quicker results and urges for more transparency
Hundreds of chemicals migrate from reusable plastic bottles
Scientific study compares chemicals migrating from new plastic sport bottles and bottles after dishwashing and one year in use; detects over 400 plastic-related compounds including oligomers and aromatic amines; finds dishwashing to increase migration