Health Canada clears BPA levels found in packaging as safe

The exposure to BPA through the consumption of jarred baby food products would be extremely low.

Canadian health authorities have said that levels of bisphenol A (BPA) recently discovered in food packaging pose no risk to consumers, after detecting the chemical in baby foods in glass jars with metal lids, as well as in some 18.5-litre bottles of drinking water.

The body surveyed 122 baby products sold last summer by six companies and found levels ranging from 0.19 part per billion to a high of 7.22 parts per billion. The Health Canada report said: "The results of this survey clearly indicate that exposure to BPA through the consumption of jarred baby food products would be extremely low”. The low levels of BPA found in jarred baby products available for sale in Canada confirms Health Canada's previous assessment conclusion that the current dietary exposure to BPA through food packaging uses is not expected to pose a health risk to the consumer.

BPA has caused widespread concern in North America after numerous studies have linked the substance, found in hard plastic baby bottles and in the linings of some food packing, to cancer and heart disease. The Canadian Government has already taken steps to ban BPA in baby bottles.

Of the BPA found in polycarbonate water bottles, the authorities said risk from exposure was very low, with water consumption of under 1,000 litres a day posing no threat.

The American Chemistry Council welcomed the findings, saying: “These new government data confirm Health Canada's previous conclusion that exposure to BPA through food packaging uses is not expected to pose a health risk to the general population, including newborns and young children.”

Fuente: www.foodproductiondaily.com

Aporte: Alejandra Lavín