The Co-op Food Stores of New Hampshire and Vermont

added 02/22/10

In a reversal of a statement made in 2008 calling bisphenol-A (BPA) safe for consumers, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently expressed “some concern” about the potential negative health effects of this ubiquitous component of food containers and packaging materials.

Bisphenol-A is an estrogenic chemical used in the production of two plastics—polycarbonate and epoxy resin. Polycarbonate is used to make rigid plastic items such as reusable water bottles, baby bottles, and toddler sippy cups. Epoxy resins coat and seal all food and beverage cans, including soda and beer, with the exception of cans used by Eden Foods for their beans (see sidebar). BPA also lines the metal lids of glass canning jars, both commercial and for home-canning.

Consumers have been exposed to BPA in food packaging since the 1950s. Prior to that time, the chemical was being studied for its estrogenic properties in the hopes of using it as a synthetic estrogen drug. Its ability to form epoxy resins and the hard plastic, polycarbonate, eventually made it more useful in the commercial production of plastics.

Today, annual global production of BPA is over six billion pounds. In 2008, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found detectable levels of this estrogen-mimicking chemical in the urine of 93 percent of Americans tested. It has also been found in adult and fetal blood, placental tissue, amniotic fluid, and breast milk.

According to a panel of 38 international experts convened by the National Institutes of Health in 2008, over 700 studies on low-dose exposure to BPA indicate a connection between exposure to BPA and increased rates of breast and prostate cancer, reproductive system abnormalities, and, from exposure in the womb, problems including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and abnormalities of the brain and male reproductive system. In October 2008, however, the FDA declared BPA to be safe and defended that position until January of this year.

While major manufacturers of baby bottles have stopped using BPA due to public pressure, and Canada has banned the use of BPA in children’s products, the American plastics industry continues to fight regulation of BPA by federal agencies.

On its web page devoted to BPA Information for Parents (www.hhs.gov/safety/bpa/), the Department of Health and Human Services—of which the FDA is a part—states that it is investing in important new studies to better determine and evaluate the potential health effects of BPA exposure, with results expected in 18 to 24 months.

Meanwhile, the December 2009 issue of Consumer Reports magazines reports the presence of BPA in an array of national brands of canned products—not just in the lining but leached into the food itself. These include high amounts in popular foods like Campbell’s Condensed Chicken Noodle Soup and Del Monte Blue Lake Green Beans.

Pending federal regulation, what can concerned consumers do to protect themselves from this potentially dangerous food additive?

Avoid using clear, hard plastic (polycarbonate) containers imprinted with the recycling number “7” and the letters “PC.” BPA-free plastic alternatives include polyethylene, which may be marked with recycling codes 1 (PET) or 2 (HDPE), and polypropylene, 5 (PP).

For refillable water bottles, choose polyethylene, stainless steel, or aluminum bottles with BPA-free liners.

Minimize use of canned foods. Eat fresh or frozen, or choose products packaged in glass or brick packs. Cook from scratch whenever possible.

Do not serve canned foods to children under the age of two. Avoid canned foods when pregnant or nursing.
Use glass baby bottles or BPA-free plastics.

Never use liquid infant formula in cans. If you must use formula, choose powdered.

Do not microwave in plastic containers or expose them to liquids at high temperatures.

Demand BPA-free cans.

In the Can: Bisphenol-A and the Organic Industry
Organic beans from Eden Foods have been packed in BPA-free cans since 1999. So why are every other company’s products packed in cans lined with BPA—even the organic ones?

Eden Foods uses steel cans coated with a baked-on oleoresinous c-enamel lining that costs the company 14 percent more than standard cans. This amounts to hundreds of thousands of dollars a year for the company, but Mike Potter, founder and president of Eden Foods, always felt he had no choice but to use BPA-free cans after he began hearing about the health issues associated with BPA.

Potter worked for two years to find a supplier who could make a can lined with an alternative to BPA resins. He finally asked, “What did you use before BPA linings were invented?” and learned it was enamel made from vegetable resins.

Meanwhile, Eden Foods organic tomatoes are still packed in cans lined with BPA. The FDA has not approved the use of a BPA-free can for high-acid foods.

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