Tag: PFCs
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Proposed California Legislation Would Ban PFCs From Fast-Food Wrappers and Containers
The California legislature is considering a bill to make the state the first in the nation to ban perfluorinated chemicals (PFCs) from restaurant food wrappers and containers. The bill proposes that food providers “shall not serve, sell, offer for sale, or offer for promotional purposes prepared food or fast food in, on, or with take-out…
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EFSA Assesses Health Risks Related to Perchlorate in Food
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has published a scientific opinion calling chronic dietary exposure to perchlorate a potential concern, “in particular for the high consumers in younger age groups of the population with mild to moderate iodine deficiency.” In addition to considering scientific literature on perchlorate levels in fruit juices, alcohol beverages, milk, and…
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Advocacy Groups Petition FDA for Ban on Chemicals Used in Food Contact Materials
The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has joined the Center for Science in the Public Interest and other consumer groups in petitioning the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to remove several chemicals from food contact materials. The first food additive petition asks FDA to promulgate a new rule “prohibiting the use of perchlorate as a…
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FSANZ IDs Exposures to Acrylamide and Aluminum
Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) has issued the first phase of its Australian Total Diet Study (ATDS), which analyzed chemicals in Australian foods and beverages and concludes that acrylamide and aluminum levels are lower than or consistent with those found in similar foods in other countries. Still, FSANZ CEO Steve McCutcheon said that it…
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Study Claims PFCs Compromise Vaccine Effectiveness
A recent study has reportedly raised concerns about whether exposure to perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) compromises vaccine effectiveness in children. Philippe Grandjean, et al., “Serum Vaccine Antibody Concentrations in Children Exposed to Perfluorinated Compounds,” Journal of the American Medical Association, January 2012. Approved for use in some food contact applications such as microwavable paper, PFCs “have…
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EPA Adds Chemicals in Pesticides and Plastics to Endocrine Disruptor Screening List
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced the addition of 134 chemicals to its second Tier 1 screening list under the Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program (EDSP). Among those chemicals listed are DBCP, 1,4-dioxane, acetaldehyde, acrolein, acrylamide, benzene, benzo(a)pyrene, chlordane, HCFC-22, perchlorate, PFOS, PFOA, and polychlorinated biphenyls. Comments are requested by December 17, 2010. According to…
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Researchers Identify Food Wrapping as Potential Source of PFCAs
University of Toronto scientists have published a study suggesting that a significant source of perfluorinated carboxylic acids (PFCAs) in human sera are the polyfluoroalkyl phosphate esters (PAPs) used in food-contact paper packaging, particularly popcorn bags and fast food wrappers. Jessica D’eon & Scott Mabury,“Exploring Indirect Sources of Human Exposure to Perfluoroalkyl Carboxylates (PFCAs): Evaluating Uptake,…
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EPA Asks Congress to Overhaul Toxic Substances Control Act
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lisa Jackson has urged Congress to pass sweeping legislative reform of the country’s chemical management law and announced plans to review the controversial food-packaging chemical bisphenol A and the perfluorinated chemicals used in nonstick cookware. In a September 29, 2009, speech at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, Jackson claimed…