The Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) has called for more stringent standards for safe exposure of workers and consumers to bisphenol A (BPA). The recommendation is included in the report, Bisphenol A. Part 2. Recommendations for risk management.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced an extension to the comment period on the food additive petition proposing that the food additive regulations be amended to no longer authorize the use of styrene and six other listed synthetic flavoring food additives. The petition—submitted by James Huff, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and five other nongovernmental organizations (NGOs)—also requested that FDA establish a zero tolerance for the additives.

Australian consumers’ exposure to food packaging chemicals is low and, therefore, concentration of these chemicals in food represent a negligible to low risk to public health. This was the conclusion drawn by Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) based on the 24th Australian Total Diet Study (ATDS), Phase 2.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published a final rule amending the food additive regulations to no longer permit the use of three perfluoroalkyl ethyl containing food-contact substances (FCSs) as oil and water repellants for paper and paperboard for use in contact with aqueous and fatty foods. All three of the FCSs are classified as long-chain perfluorinated compounds (at least 8 carbons in length). The three FCSs are:

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) filed a food additive petition proposing that the food additive regulations be amended to no longer authorize the use of styrene and six other listed synthetic flavoring food additives, and to establish zero tolerances for the additives.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued final rules to implement three major provisions of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). The Foreign Supplier Verification Programs [FSVP] for Importers of Food for Humans and Animals final rule applies to importers of food.

China’s new Food Safety Law (FSL) became effective on October 1, 2015.   The law was passed earlier this year, in response to several high-profile food safety scandals and the need for China to harmonize with the global practice of food safety management. The new law includes a number of significant changes to China’s food regulations and new mechanisms to deepen the reforms.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published its final rule on November 27, 2015, to implement a third-party accreditation program under the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). The rule establishes an FDA accreditation system to govern bodies that conduct food safety audits and issue certifications for facilities and food.