Denies petition to ban common chemical BPA

March 30, 2012|Reuters

* Chemical may be harmful to babies, children

* FDA says not final response on BPA's safety

(Adds details on petition, FDA comment)

WASHINGTON, March 30 (Reuters) - U.S. health regulators

denied a petition to ban a chemical used in water bottles, soup

cans and other food and drink packaging that may cause harm to

developing babies and young children.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said the petition to

ban the chemical bisphenol A, or BPA, did not provide the

scientific evidence needed to change current regulations.

BPA has been used for decades to harden plastic or make the

epoxy resin that lines tin cans, but it can also leach into food

and water from these protective coatings.


beverage packaging as part of the settlement of a lawsuit

reached in December with the Natural Resources Defense Council


"The FDA denied the NRDC petition because it did not have

the scientific data needed for the FDA to change current

regulations, which allows the use of BPA in food packaging," FDA

spokesman Douglas Karas said.

"I cannot stress enough that this is not a final safety

determination on BPA."

In response to further scientific studies, Canada declared

BPA a toxic substance in 2010. Both Canada and Europe have

already banned it in the production of baby bottles, and France

banned it in food packaging.

(Reporting by Anna Yukhananov; Editing by Richard Chang)