FDA promises BPA decision by end of November

In a statement made exclusively to FoodProductionDaily.com​, an FDA spokesperson said: “During August, FDA’s CFSAN (Centre for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition) scientific staff will complete their draft review of additional studies evaluating the potential risk of low dose BPA exposures, as was recommended by the Science Board’s Report and also including more recently published studies.​

“The draft review will focus on potential adverse human health effects considered to be of some concern in the NTP assessment. The FDA’s chief scientist will consider that review and other expert opinion.” ​

Finally, the FDA commissioner will review the science, consider the recommendations and make a decision on how to proceed by the end of November, said the statement.

Food containers​

In early June, FDA said it would review its advice that BPA is safe to use in baby bottles and food containers and announce its conclusion with weeks.

Anti-BPA campaigners believe the administration already has enough evidence of the risks to health posed by BPA. Breast Cancer Fund has urged the FDA to issue a warning that the chemical has been linked to breast cancer, pending a final decision on its safety.

New studies have linked the chemical to heart disease and diabetes. In one study, BPA was also found to interfere in the effectiveness of chemotherapy for breast cancer patients.

But the US chemical industry defends vigorously the safety of BPA in food contact applications. After Chicago became the first US city to ban the chemical in baby bottles and sipper cups last May, the American Chemical Council said: “ACC and its member companies that manufacture and use BPA are committed to providing the compounds and plastics that make possible a range of products that protect human health and safety.”

Contact materials​

Meanwhile, earlier this month FoodProductionDaily.com reported that France could become the first European country to ban BPA in food containers if a bill tabled by senators becomes law. Their proposal calls for the chemical to be banned in food contact materials and baby bottles.

But, both the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) insisted in June that all the scientific evidence supported the view that BPA poses no risk to human health in food containers or bottles.