But a poll from the UK indicates that a majority of the public there believe a precautionary ban on use of the chemical in food contact material for babies should be introduced while the food safety watchdog considers its opinion.
Industry support
Plastics Europe said it backed the move by EFSA and said the industry has not been unsettled by its decision to postpone delivering its opinion until September. The association’s Polycarbonate and BPA group said conducting a thorough review on the safety of the substance was more important than giving a quick verdict.
The announcement by EFSA on Friday was the second deferral by its scientific panel of 21 experts as it asked for more time to weigh up the evidence from around 800 studies on BPA. It had originally been scheduled to supply its opinion by the end of May before saying it would seek to make its decision on the matter by early July.
Jasmin Bird, spokeswoman for the industry association, dismissed suggestions that the plastics industry may have been destabilised by the delay.
“Industry is not unsettled, on the contrary, industry supports that EFSA takes the time needed to accomplish a comprehensive and thorough review of the available scientific data,” she told FoodProductionDaily.com. “It is quality and validity, not speed that is of importance here. Only an opinion based on the thorough assessment of the scientific evidence will provide consumers - and all other partners - with the reliable statement on BPA they need.”
Tolerable daily intake
The PC/BPA group also welcomed the decision by EFSA to maintain the tolerable daily intake (TDI) at its current level of 0.05mg/kg bodyweight while it continued to assess all the relevant scientific information. However, EFSA told the European Commission that its members had suggested converting this into a temporary TDI.
The trade body further highlighted EFSA’s assessment that the so-called Stump study does not provide evidence of the chemical affecting neurobehavioural behaviour. The Danish Government used findings from this research as the basis for its ban on BPA in food contact materials for children aged 3 and under. The group said the Danish base for its outlawing of BPA had “clearly been weakened” by the EFSA statement.
The preliminary finding from EFSA was a confirmation of its and other authorities´ previous assessments that concluded BPA posed no health hazards in food contact materials at current exposure levels, said Plastics Europe.
Public/industry divide?
However, the results of a recent survey by Breast Cancer UK perhaps highlight a growing divide between consumers and industry – with 72 per cent of the public polled agreeing that the UK Government should “take a precautionary approach like France and Denmark and introduce their own measures to end the use of BPA in babies bottles sold in the UK”.
The online survey, conducted between 14-17 May, 2010, had a sample size of 2,085. The figures were weighted and are representative of all GB adults, said Breast Cancer UK.
Commenting on the EFSA decision to delay its opinion, the body’s chair of trustees, Claire Dimmer applauded its thoroughness but noted: “However, it is a pity that the delay of their decision about the hazards of BPA has been moved from May, through July, until September because many more children will potentially be exposed to BPA in their baby and toddler products during those extra few months throughout the EU.”