THIS REPORT CONTAINS ASSESSMENTS OF COMMODITY AND TRADE ISSUES MADE BY
USDA STAFF AND NOT NECESSARILY STATEMENTS OF OFFICIAL U.S. GOVERNMENT
POLICY
-
Date:
GAIN Report Number:
Post:
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Report Highlights:
In September 2012, Belgium passed a ban on the use of Bisphenol
-
A, or BPA in the packaging of food products
for children less than
three years old and also in plastic articles like spoons and plates for the same age group.
The ban went into force on January 1
st
of this year.
Marcel Pinckaers
Mary Ellen Smith
Food and Agricultural Import Regulations and
Standards
-
Narrative
Trade Policy Monitoring
Belgium bans use of Bisphenol A
The Hague
Belgi
um
-
Luxembourg
BE3002
1/15/2013
Public
Voluntary
In September 2012, Belgium passed a ban on the use of Bisphenol
-
A, or BPA in the packaging of food produc
ts
for children less than three years old and also
in
plastic
articles
like spoons and plates for the same age group.
The ban went into force on January 1
st
of this year.
BPA is a compound that is used to make polycarbonate polymers and epoxy resins, alo
ng with other materials
used to make plastics. For many decades, it has been widely used, especially in food packaging. It notably
strengthens polycarbonate plastics which otherwise would be more prone to cracks when impacted. Used in
resins as a liner,
it protects metal food containers from corrosion from aqueous and/or acid content, notably in
canned food and canned drinks. It is also widely used to protect metal lids on glass jars (including baby food).
U
ncertainty
in some of the findings of the 2
010 European Food Safety Authority EFSA research triggered
the
Belgians to take measures and formulate this new law. The
Belgian Government GOBE i
ndicated that
there is no
reason to
expand the ban at this point as they want to wait for the outcome of the
EFSA assessment of the safety
of BPA in food packaging
which is expected later this year
.
The
Belgian
food
retailers and
industry have not reacted against the ban. Since
it
concerns food for children
younger than three years, the ban targets in practic
e baby food.
This market seems to be
dominated
by Belgian
producers
.
U.S. exports of baby food to Belgium are negligible.
The Belgian food processing industry and producers of plastic
articles
do not use BPA. Imported plastic
articles
for children le
ss than three years old will be checked on BPA
and this will be
performed by the
Federal Agency
for the Safety of the Food Chain FAVV
.
Control checks on BPA in
the packaging of food products for children
less than three years old will
start
later this year
, most likely
as of
July 2013.
Point
s
of Contact:
Federal Public Service
Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment
Mr. Carl Berthot
Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain
FAVV
Ms. Caroline
D
e
p
raeter