Maine Identifies Potential Food Contact Chemicals of High Concern

Maine United States of America

Food contact materials Carcinogens Hazardous substances Endocrine disruptors

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has issued a draft report that identifies food packaging substances proposed for listing under Maine’s Toxic Chemicals in Food Packaging law. This law, adopted in 2019 as an amendment to Maine’s Toxic Chemicals in Packaging statute, requires DEP to publish a list of no more than ten food contact chemicals of high concern to gather information on whether they are currently used in food packaging in Maine and to evaluate the possibility of safer alternatives.

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DEP’s February 8, 2021 draft report identifies the following substances proposed for listing as food contact chemicals of high concern and provides the bases for how these substances meet the toxicity and exposure criteria discussed above:

(*) Bisphenol A, Bisphenol B, Bisphenol S, and Bisphenol F (Grouped together as “Bisphenol Structure”)

(*) 4-Octyl phenol

(*) Octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (D4)

(*) Toluene

(*) Styrene

(*) Benzene

(*) Methylenedianiline

(*) Propyl paraben, Butyl paraben, Methyl paraben, Ethyl paraben (Grouped together as “Paraben structure”)

(*) Benzophenone

(*) Nonylphenol

Comments on the draft list are due by March 10, 2021.

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