Sécurité sanitaire et qualité des aliments

Recent and emerging food packaging alternatives: chemical safety risks, current regulations and analytical challenges

28/11/2024

A review on the safety of alternative food packaging co-authored by experts from FAO and Danone has been published in the journal Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety.

The article examines the potential risks and opportunities associated with recycled and bio-based materials used in food packaging, reusable and hybrid packaging, and innovations such as nanotechnologies and active and intelligent packaging. Reviewing regulations governing recent and emerging food packaging materials, the authors find a lack of harmonization among regulatory requirements globally.

Growing demand for sustainable food packaging

Population and income growth are driving the demand for food, which in turn is expected to increase the use of food packaging. Food packaging plays a crucial role in keeping food safe and reducing food waste. However, the footprint of conventional packaging needs to be considered, in particular in terms of plastic circularity and greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, the risk of chemicals used in these types of packaging, migrating into food must be carefully taken into consideration. Depending on the level of migration, this may pose a health concern, especially for certain populations, including young children, who are more vulnerable to the effects of chemical substances.

“This is a state-of-the-art overview on food packaging innovation and potential food safety hazards that need to be addressed through a risk-based approach”, said co-author Jossie Garthoff, Global Food Safety Scientific Affairs Leader at Danone.

Packaging solutions – opportunities and food safety challenges

To tackle the environmental issues associated with food packaging, efforts are being made to apply circular principles to food packaging, through a reduce-reuse-recycle-redesign (4R) approach.

“New food packaging solutions are greatly needed today. Identifying and addressing possible food safety risks with such alternatives will not only safeguard consumer health but also encourage more innovations in this space.” said Keya Mukherjee, Food Safety Consultant at FAO and one of the authors of the article.

The review finds that while some potential food safety hazards are common to conventional packaging, others are specific to new food contact materials. Among these are the presence of proteins and risk of allergenicity in bio-based materials, microbiological and chemical contaminants in reusable packaging, and the presence of certain substances in recycled materials that are not intended for food contact materials. 

The authors highlight the need to continuously improve analytical capabilities to keep pace with the growing variety of substances used in new food contact materials. These substances must be adequately assessed to ensure they do not pose a health risk to consumers. This task is complicated by the lack of harmonized regulations globally, compounding challenges for all stakeholders in the food chain, including the food industry.

The article proposes a One Health approach to evaluate new food packaging. By assessing the risks and determining the impacts on humans, animals and the environment together, this approach could support the development of more sustainable packaging in the future.

This work is part of a partnership between FAO and Danone to scale up sustainable food and agricultural practices and provide people with access to more diverse and healthier foods. One pillar of the partnership is the exchange of information on emerging food safety issues, including new trends and drivers.

Reference

Lacourt, C., Mukherjee, K., Garthoff, J., O'Sullivan, A., Meunier, L., & Fattori, V. (2024). Recent and emerging food packaging alternatives: Chemical safety risks, current regulations, and analytical challenges. Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety, 23, e70059. https://doi.org/10.1111/1541-4337.70059

 

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