BfR: Food packaging from recycled materials must be safe

Berlin / DE. (bfr) Around 300 participants discussed at the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) within the framework of the ninth BfR Forum on Consumer Protection entitled «How to package food safely – health risks of recycled materials?» in early November about food packaging made of recycled materials, their benefits in terms of sustainable management and their health risks for consumers. Cardboard packaging made of recycling paper came under discussion during the past months after residues of mineral oil had been detected which can migrate in relevant amounts into the packaged food. «A final health assessment of these residues is currently still difficult, because this concerns complex mixtures», said BfR President Professor Dr. Dr. Andreas Hensel. Furthermore, there are currently only a few laboratories which have appropriate analytical equipment for their detection. The participants in the BfR forum agreed that it is urgently necessary to find solutions for a reduction of migrations of mineral oil from cardboard packages made of recycled paper into foods.
Food packaging from recycled materials must be safe
Migration of mineral oil from packaging materials to foodstuffs
9th BfR Forum on Consumer Protection
FAQ on the migration of mineral oil from packaging materials to foodstuffs

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