The peak body for Australia's grocers has called for calm on the issue of Bisphenol A (BPA) in food packaging, stating it poses no "danger to humans" at levels detected.
The call followed testing by consumer group CHOICE which found that, of 38 samples of canned foods commonly found on Australian supermarket shelves, 29 contained BPA at levels "some experts believe could be harmful".
The Australian Food and Grocery Council (AFGC) said the study did not find any cases of BPA in Australian canned foods above safety limits set by the European Union.
"There's no scientific evidence internationally that has shown any dangers to humans from BPA in canned products or bottles," AFGC deputy chief executive Dr Geoffrey Annison said in a statement on Thursday.
"Products containing BPA have been subject to significant and rigorous investigations by leading world authorities and, in recent years, food regulators in the United States, UK and the EU have examined the latest findings and have determined that the use of BPA continues to be safe."
Dr Annison said the CHOICE study, released on Thursday, found none of the 38 canned foods it tested contained BPA levels above the EU limit of 660 parts per billion (ppb).
Industry was in talks with the nation's food safety regulator on the issue, he said, and Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ) had publicly stated that BPA levels in Australian food products did not pose a significant health risk.
Dr Annison said the nation's retailers did move from July 1 to voluntarily withdraw from sale baby bottles containing BPA but this was a precautionary step to address consumer concerns.
"Australian manufacturers have acknowledged this level of consumer concern and proactively undertaken to phase out baby bottles containing BPA," he said.
BPA-free products including baby food cans would be available within 12 months with metal closures on glass jars and bottles to follow soon afterwards, Dr Annison said.
BPA is an endocrine-disrupting chemical which has been linked to a number of illnesses such as infertility, breast and prostate cancer, diabetes, heart diseases and attention deficit disorder.
The chemical has been used for many years to make polycarbonate plastic and is found in epoxy resins which are used to line cans to prevent corrosion.
The highest levels (more than 200 ppb) were found in samples of Edgell Corn Kernels and John West Tuna Olive Oil Blend.
Three samples of Heinz baby or children's food were also within this range, including one product which had a BPA reading of between 300 ppb and 420 ppb.
"Our national regulator, FSANZ, maintains low levels of BPA in food pose no significant health risk," said CHOICE spokesman Christopher Zinn.
"However a number of scientists believe this advice is based on outdated research and say babies and small children in particular are at risk because of their small body weight and rapid growth.
Mr Zinn said "opinion may be divided" over the health implications of BPA-containing food products but when it came to children and the potential for long-term health issues "why take unnecessary risks?"
Heinz Australia said it was working to remove BPA from all baby food packaging in response to feedback from consumers.
"This decision was made last year and was subsequently announced in July (this year), to coincide with the major supermarkets' announcement that they will voluntarily phase out baby bottles containing BPA," a company spokesperson said.
Baby bottles containing BPA are also being phased out in Canada, Denmark and the United States.
Front page
RSS Feed