BPA is one of the world’s best-selling chemicals. In contact with food, BPA can migrate from plastic items. It is a harmful substance that can interfere with the body’s hormone balance, even in tiny quantities. Some countries have banned its use in a few products. There are products that are advertised as BPA-free, but the labels on these products do not tell us which other chemicals may have been used instead of BPA, or whether they are actually just as harmful.
Banning dangerous chemicals but then replacing them with other substances that may be just as dangerous does not, of course, amount to a solution. Entire groups of substances need to be banned or restricted, not just some chemicals within a group.
Plastic contains over 4,000 different chemicals, many of which are unknown even to their manufacturers. Others are added as part of top-secret recipes. If there is evidence of a risk, for example based on laboratory tests, the affected chemicals are then checked. Studies are required, which may then lead to the use of these chemicals being restricted or even banned. Different countries often come to different decisions, but sometimes they do also consult and work together.
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