EDC-Free Europe, a coalition of over 70 environmental, health, women's, and consumer groups across Europe, has issued a public letter addressed to Vice President Timmermans, Commissioner Kyriakides, and Commissioner Sinkevicius, urging immediate action to reduce exposure to the endocrine-disrupting chemical, Bisphenol A (BPA).
The letter comes in response to the European Food Safety Authority's (EFSA) conclusions, which highlight the health risks posed by current levels of BPA exposure across all age groups in the EU population. EFSA's opinion, dated April 19, 2023, significantly lowered the Tolerable Daily Intake (TDI) for BPA compared to previous standards.
While the European Commission has announced intentions to ban BPA in food contact materials, EDC-Free Europe expresses concern that no immediate measures are planned to address the urgent exposure risks identified by EFSA. The coalition also highlights the alarming results of the 2022 European-wide human biomonitoring study (HBM4EU), which revealed widespread BPA contamination among EU citizens.
In their letter, EDC-Free Europe emphasizes the potential negative effects of BPA exposure, including impacts on children's health, brain development, reproductive functioning, obesity, diabetes, and its high concern for wildlife.
EDC-Free Europe calls upon the European Commission to take immediate action, including:
Ensuring that the upcoming ban on BPA in food contact materials extends to cover all other bisphenols used as replacements.
Expanding the planned bisphenol restriction under REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals) to include human health risks, tasking the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) with this critical extension.
The coalition underscores the urgency of the situation and the need to rectify the historically slow and inadequate regulation of BPA and similar harmful chemicals.
Sandra Jen, the Coordinator of the EDC-Free Europe campaign, concludes the letter by urging the European Commission to promptly address the contamination issue, emphasizing its significant impact on public health, the environment, and societal costs.
Link to EDC-free Europe letter