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Food contact materials can be toxic!

Throughout life we end up consuming considerable amounts of harmful compounds from food packaging. Plasticizers, heavy metals, dyes: we eat them all - it results from the report of WESSLING laboratories.

Substances released from packaging materials can be dangerous to human health.

Insoluble behavior is a relative concept. There is no completely insoluble material, and the statement that a plastic object is completely insoluble does not correspond to reality.

Compounds released from packaging materials can affect the human internal organs that regulate metabolism and hormonal balance. Prolonged exposure can cause kidney and liver failure, can be carcinogenic by distorting the structure of the hereditary substance, can interfere with the smooth development of sexual characteristics in childhood, can be dangerous for the nervous and immune systems and can cause breast, testicular and prostate cancers.

According to some estimates, a person consumes during his life up to 30-40 dkg of a substance (monomers, oligomers, stabilizers, antioxidants, plasticizers, blowing agents, heavy metals, dyes, manufacturing aids) which is released from packaging. That is why it is important to study this group of products.

In the case of packaging materials, occasional exposure to high doses is not encountered, as the dissolution of these materials takes place in very small quantities, but over a long period of time. Dissolution is influenced by temperature, with increasing temperature the dissolution becomes stronger. Think only of the soft drinks left in the car in the sun that it is not recommended to drink even when they have cooled.

How does the dissolution take place?

According to some estimates, a person consumes during his life up to 30-40 dkg of a substance (monomers, oligomers, stabilizers, antioxidants, plasticizers, blowing agents, heavy metals, dyes, manufacturing aids) which is released from packaging. That is why it is important to study this group of products.

In the case of packaging materials, occasional exposure to high doses is not encountered, as the dissolution of these materials takes place in very small quantities, but over a long period of time. Dissolution is influenced by temperature, with increasing temperature the dissolution becomes stronger. Think only of the soft drinks left in the car in the sun that it is not recommended to drink even when they have cooled.

The processes of material transfer take place according to the laws of nature, the basic phenomenon being diffusion, which, together with the differential equations that generally describe the dissolution processes, were formulated by the physician and inventor Eugene Fick.

What compounds dissolve in printed products?

Mineral fractions that contaminate food and related materials can be classified as MOAH (Mineral Oil Aromatic Hydrocarbons) and MOSH (Mineral Oil Saturated Hydrocarbons). Hydrocarbons containing aromatic fragments are more dangerous for warm-blooded organisms (such as humans and farm animals) because they can cause disorders of the body's genetic system through their genotoxicity.

In the case of stored packaging materials wrapped and printed on their outer surface, contact between the inner and outer surface can also lead to contamination if the product is wrapped before the printed surface is completely dry.

As substances and machinery intended to come into contact with food can cause contamination with mineral oils in foodstuffs, European Commission Recommendation 2017/84 (16 January 2017) provides for the monitoring of petroleum hydrocarbons in food and food contact materials, especially in the following groups. of products:

  • Animal fats, vegetable oils,
  • Fine bakery products,
  • Breakfast cereals,
  • Confectionery (including chocolate),
  • Food prepared from fish,
  • Seeds for human consumption, nuts,
  • Ice cream, desserts,
  • Pasta and other cereal products,
  • Legume products,
  • Sausages

Another important group of pollutants are fluorocarbons, which, like other plastic migrants, are toxic: they can damage the kidneys, liver, thyroid, testicles and prostate, cause high blood pressure during pregnancy and can be immunotoxic in children. Perfluorinated hydrocarbons can be found mainly in heat-resistant and grease-resistant paper packaging. A scientific study reported that 33% of the 407 samples were able to detect fluoride-containing hydrocarbons.

How is it measured, what is it measured?

Preparation of molecular biological food analysis for animal species identification

A variety of methods are used in laboratories to test substances released from packaging materials. The metal content of the samples is analyzed by spectroscopic technique, impurities and components consisting of organic molecules are analyzed by separation technique, mainly by a chromatographic method.

Because food and cosmetics packaging products, if not compliant, can adversely affect the taste and smell of packaged products. Analytical laboratories begin testing in most cases using organoleptic methods.

Dissolution processes are simulated with so-called model food imitation solutions and, in the case of volatile migration components, with an absorbent called TENAX fantasy. The testing of migrant compounds is performed from these materials imitating food in accordance with relevant regulations and professional standards. An extraction test with artificial saliva and, in some cases, with collected natural saliva is also a common method for examining children's toys. The total amount of dissolved compounds is determined by the mass measurement method (gravimetric), qualitatively by the metal and organic analytical methods mentioned above. Individual plastic polymers can sometimes be identified by infrared spectroscopy.

In laboratories, plasticizers, antioxidants, photostabilizers, illicit dyes, monomers, oligomers, petroleum derivatives, bacteriostatic agents, heavy metals and fluorinated substances are most commonly measured. In the case of paper and plates, the emphasis is on primary aromatic amines, phthalates, metals, bisphenol A, MOSH / MOAH compounds.

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Top event in the food industry

Between May 17-21, 2021, the 5th edition of RO.ALIMENT SHOW (former Ingredients SHOW) will take place, the most complex online event dedicated to the food industry and food supplements, a conference which is expected to be attended by over 500 specialists.

WESSLING Romania has been a partner since the first edition of the event, and this year Dr. Tamas Szigeti from Hungary will talk about MOSH-MOAH contaminations in food products and the most modern detection methods used in WESSLING laboratories.