Use of Recycled Plastics in Food Packaging
2024-05-22 16:43The purpose of this document is to highlight the chemistry issues that FDA recommends that a manufacturer of recycled plastic consider during the manufacturer’s evaluation of a recycling process for producing material suitable for food-contact applications. This document supersedes the“Points to Consider for the Use of Recycled Plastics in Food Packaging: Chemistry Considerations”. The possibility that chemical contaminants in plastic materials intended for recycling may remain in the recycled material and could migrate into the food the material contacts is one of the major considerations for the safe use of recycled plastics for food-contact applications. Other aspects of plastics recycling, such as microbial contamination and structural integrity of the recycled plastic, are also important, but are not discussed in this document. FDA’s guidance documents, including this guidance, do not establish legally enforceable responsibilities. Instead, guidances describe the Agency’s current thinking on a topic and should be viewed only as recommendations, unless specific regulatory or statutory requirements are cited. The use of the word should in Agency guidances means that something is suggested or recommended, but not required.