Following its review of two new scientific studies of bisphenol A (BPA), the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA; www.efsa.europa.eu) said it found these were not conclusive enough to warrant changing its temporary tolerable daily intake (TDI) recommendation for the chemical used in the engineering plastic polycarbonate and epoxy resin can liners. The papers, which had raised concerns in an assessment of international research by the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM, The Hague; www.rivm.nl/en), were passed on to the EU’s food safety watchdog in spring of this year – see Plasteurope.com of 29.04.2016.

EFSA said its review of the studies – both by Menard et al – which had not been published at the time of its last evaluation, showed there were “key limitations” in the way they were designed and carried out. What’s more, the data was “too variable” to use in setting a new TDI. Thus it plans to keep its temporary recommended TDI at 4 microgrammes per kilogramme of body weight for now. The EU body stressed, however, that it remains committed to re-evaluating BPA when a two-year study by the US National Toxicology Program is completed in 2017. Silvio Silano, chair of EFSA’s expert panel on Food Contact Materials, Enzymes, Flavourings and Processing Aids (CEF), said additional immunological studies such as those conducted by Menard could be useful to the new review if their limitations are addressed.

In response to EFSA’s announcement, PlasticsEurope (Brussels / Belgium; www.plasticseurope.org), the industry association representing European plastics producers, commented that based on the “clear results” of the most recent evaluation the EU can now move forward swiftly with its 2015 draft regulation on BPA – see Plasteurope.com of 23.01.2015. Jasmin Bird of PlasticsEurope’s PC/BPA group said recent calls by the European Parliament for a ban on BPA in food contact materials were “clearly disproportionate.”