A survey conducted by Food Packaging Forum (Switzerland) identified nearly 200 possible breast carcinogens on materials that come into contact with food, including plastics and paper, highlighting the extent of exposure despite current regulations.
The results, collected in “Frontiers in Toxicology” stress the urgency of adopting preventive measures stricter measures to reduce these chemicals in everyday products.
Specifically, Food Packaging Forum researchers identified and analyzed nearly 200 possible breast carcinogens that have been detected in food contact materials (FCMs) on the market. Many countries have food contact materials legislation aimed at protecting citizens from hazardous chemicals, often specifically by regulating genotoxic carcinogens.
Since cancer is one of the few health effects specifically addressed in FCM regulations and testing, carcinogenic chemicals in food packaging and other materials and objects in contact with food should not be common.
“This study is important because it shows that there is a huge opportunity to prevent human exposure to chemicals that cause breast cancer,” said Jane Muncke, executive director of the Food Packaging Forum and co-author of the study. “The potential for cancer prevention by reducing hazardous chemicals in everyday life “It has not been explored enough and deserves much more attention.”
Comparing a recently published list of possible breast carcinogens developed by scientists at the Silent Spring Institute with the Food Packaging Forum’s own database of migratory and extractable chemicals in contact with food (FCCmigex), the authors found that 189 possible breast carcinogens in FCM, including 143 in plastics and 89 in paper or cardboard.
“Identifying the presence of these hazardous chemicals in food contact materials was made possible by our FCCmigex database,” said Lindsey Parkinson, data scientist and science writer at the Food Packaging Forum and lead author of the study. “This resource brings together valuable information from thousands of Published scientific studies on chemicals in materials that come into contact with food in one easy-to-explore location.
If we limit the comparison to the most recent studies available in FCCmigex (2020-2022) that used migration experiments mimicking realistic conditions, There is evidence of exposure to 76 suspected carcinogens mammary glands from food contact construction materials purchased worldwide, Of which 61 (80%) come from plastic. This indicates that the global population continues to be exposed to these chemicals under realistic conditions of use.
Despite existing regulations to limit carcinogens in food contact foods, the study highlights gaps in current regulatory frameworks. Food contact items have been purchased in recent years in markets in highly regulated regions, including the EU and the US. “Our findings imply that chronic exposure of the general population to Suspected breast carcinogens from food contact is the norm and highlights an important, but currently underestimated, prevention opportunity,” the authors explain.
