Consumer exposure

Food Contact Materials (FCM)

Epoxies are used in the protective lining of food and beverage cans. EFSA, the European Food Safety Authorisation, has set very low specific migration limits for BPA: 0.05 mg of BPA per kg of food. The new SLM has been published in a new Coatings and vanishes regulation amending the food contact regulation (EU) No 10/2011 and is effective as of 6th of September 2018.

Commission Regulation (EU) 2018/213 of 12 February 2018 on the use of bisphenol A in varnishes and coatings

As temporary tolerable daily intake, a 4 micrograms per kg/day limit has been set in 2015 which is currently subject to an EFSA re-evaluation. Results from that re-evaluation are expected for 2020.

The agency’s CEF[1] panel – the Panel on Food Contact Materials, Enzymes, Flavourings and Processing Aids – concluded in 2015 that BPA poses no health risk to consumers because current exposure to the chemical is too low to cause harm:

• Current levels of exposure are well below the tolerable daily intake of 4 µg/kg of bw/day. This also applies to pregnant women and to the elderly.
• The aggregated exposure to BPA from foodstuff, toys, dust, cosmetics and thermal paper is also below the tolerable daily intake of 4 µg/kg bw/day.
• A person weighing 65 kg would have to eat 12 kg of canned fruit and vegetables, 3.5 kg of convenience meals and 88 litres of canned beverages every day to reach the safety limit. Therefore, intake above the safety limit for BPA is clearly impossible.