Dangerous food contact chemicals found in humans

A quarter (3,601) of known FCCs were present in humans, according to research published in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology.

Many of the 100 chemicals identified as potentially hazardous have been linked to cancer, genetic mutations or other health issues.

“For 25% of the known FCCs, we found evidence for their presence in humans,” said the report. “This includes 194 FCCs from human biomonitoring programmes, with 80 of these having hazard properties of high concern.”

Fourteen thousand FCCS with the capability of “migrating” into food from paper, glass, metal or other materials had been previously catalogued by researchers.

How many FCCs in the human body? 

In this study, researchers expected to find hundreds – not thousands – of FCCs, Birgit Geuke, lead study author and senior scientific officer at the Food Packaging Forum.

EFSA regulations state manufacturers must use food and drink packaging materials that conform to strict health and safety testing and are compliant with “legal migration limits”​.

While this research focused on the presence of FCCs from stored, processed, packaged and served food products, it was acknowledged exposure could occur from other sources.

“Our research helps to establish the link between food contact chemicals and human exposure, highlights chemicals that are overlooked in biomonitoring studies and supports research into safer food contact materials,”  said Gueke.

The study is the first to link chemicals used in food processing and packaging materials to human consumption and highlights that although health and safety regulations are met, the chemicals are present in people and their potential health impact not fully understood.

Health effects of food chemicals

“There is almost no evidence on the health effects of these chemicals,” said Gueke.

The study could not identify whether there were any high concentration levels of any of the chemicals, though one sample did contain up to 30 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAs).

However, the presence of a chemical in a human was not necessarily an indication of risk, nor a cause of concern, scientists assured. 

Some chemicals found by the researchers were already the subject of bans, with the EU in the late stages of legislating against the use of PFAS in food packaging and a proposed ban on bisphenol A – already banned from use in baby bottles in some countries – later this year.

The research follows a paper from Zero Waste Europe that suggested packaged food and drink makers should move towards reusable formats, including glass, metals and hardwearing plastics, to cut CO2 emissions.

Source: Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology
Published: 17 September
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41370-024-00718-2
Authors: Geueke, B., Parkinson, L.V., Groh, K.J. et al​