The scientific testing of all plastic containers looks at two specific aspects: establishing that there is a minimal amount of transfer of substance between plastic food packaging and its contents, and establishing that any substances that may transfer from the
plastic to the food do not pose a risk to human health.
How does one verify safe packaging?
FDA carefully reviews all packaging substances that come into contact with food
and beverages. As part of its review, FDA assesses the migration or potential migration
“FDA has strict standards of quality
and clear standards of identity
for bottled water that
protect
consumers.”
of plastics and substances within plastic into the liquid contents. FDA has found that
the levels of migration to food of the substances in plastics are well within the margin
of safety based on information available to the agency (i.e., toxicological testing has
demonstrated that the cumulative dietary concentration of these migrants resulting
from the use of the plastic materials in food packaging is at least 100- to 1,000-fold
lower than the level at which no toxic effect was observed in animal studies). This
means no short- or long-term health effects are likely to occur, even from life-long,
daily dietary exposure to these substances migrating from plastic food-contact materials.
tic bottles due to the presence of a substance known as BPA. Polycarbonate
plastic is used in a wide variety of consumer products, including food and
drink containers. Many 3- and 5-gallon
bottled water containers are made of
polycarbonate plastic and consumers
can remain confident about the safety of
these products.
Polycarbonate plastic has been the
material of choice for food and beverage
product containers for nearly 50 years
because it is lightweight, highly shatter-resistant and transparent. During that
time, many studies have been conducted to assess the potential for trace
levels of BPA to migrate from polycarbonate bottles into foods or beverages.
The conclusions from those studies and
comprehensive safety evaluations by
government bodies worldwide are that
polycarbonate bottles are safe for consumer use.
Do PET bottles release dangerous substances when exposed to high or freezing temperatures?
It’s important to understand that single-serve PET plastic bottles do not contain
compounds capable of producing dangerous substances under conditions of normal
use, including being subjected to hot cars or placed in a freezer. The Johns Hopkins
Bloomberg School of Public Health has weighed in on the issue of freezing bottled
water. Its website states: “This is an urban legend. Freezing actually works against the
release of chemicals…[freezing] would limit chemical release if there were dioxins in
plastic, and we don’t think there are.”
FDA has reviewed migration-testing data and has concluded that PET containers
do not leach harmful amounts of substances into their contents even under extreme
conditions of use. With respect to leaving bottled water in a hot car, FDA has stated:
“It is true that exposing the bottle to higher temperatures may imply a greater degree
of migration of substances from the plastic to the water [or other beverages in similar containers]. However, in its safety review, the FDA takes into account exposures to higher
temperatures, such as during storage and transportation of bottled water prior to sale,
in its estimates of potential levels of migration of substances from the plastic to the
water.
“The levels of migration expected, including during periods of exposure to elevated
temperatures in storage and transport (such as might be experienced in a closed vehicle
in the sun) have, as discussed above, been determined by the agency to be well within
the margin of safety. Therefore, the agency does not consider this situation to be a
safety concern.”
What is FDA’s stance on BPA?
On October 28, 2008, FDA issued a
statement in response to a report by an
FDA Science Board Subcommittee that
raised questions regarding FDA’s safety
assessment of BPA. FDA agreed that
more research “would be valuable” and
the agency is “moving forward” with additional planned studies.
That statement also reaffirmed the
agency’s position regarding the safety of
BPA. It said: “Consumers should know
that based upon all available evidence,
the present consensus among regulatory
agencies in the United States, Canada,
Europe and Japan is that current levels
of exposure to BPA through food packaging do not pose an immediate health
risk to the general population, including
infants and babies.”
What is the safety record of polycarbonate plastics?
Recent media stories have raised questions about the safety of polycarbonate plas-
Do plastic water bottles have a “shelf
life?”
Container producers and bottlers
continually conduct shelf tests of finished products over varying time periods
and under various conditions to help
ensure the safety and integrity of the
package and its contents. Bottled water
is considered a shelf-stable product, and
there is no information linking safety
concerns with bottled water sold up to
