Formula makers use controversial chemical in packaging: study
All four of the major manufacturers of liquid infant formula sold in North America use cans lined with bisphenol A, a chemical that mimics the hormone estrogen, according to a survey conducted by the Environmental Working Group.
The Washington-based environmental organization also found that four of the five manufacturers of powdered formula acknowledge using the chemical in their packaging. It said Nestle told the group that it didn't use bisphenol A in containers for its powdered formula, but the company wouldn't put the claim in writing.
The results of the survey will be released today by the group in the United States, and in Canada by Toronto-based Environmental Defence, which has been lobbying Health Canada to ban the controversial material in food and beverage containers.
"I think it's ludicrous that we're putting a suspected endocrine disruptor ... in infant formula, in baby food," said Aaron Freeman, a spokesman for Environmental Defence.
Health Canada is conducting a safety assessment on bisphenol A and says it expects to conclude its preliminary work by next spring.
Because bisphenol A doesn't impart a taste to food, the chemical is widely used to make the epoxy linings on the insides of food and beverage cans sold in North America; it is also used in polycarbonate plastic baby bottles and water bottles.
Mr. Freeman said the flagship brands of baby formula sold by the manufacturers in the United States that were the subject of the U.S. survey are also widely available in Canada.
Phone calls seeking comment yesterday to the Canadian divisions of Nestle, Abbott Laboratories Ltd., and Mead Johnson, companies that make popular infant formulas Good Start, Similac and Enfamil, respectively, were not returned.
Earlier this year, the Environmental Working Group issued a report that found babies would get higher exposures to bisphenol A from their formula than from the amounts leaching out of their plastic baby bottles. It based the results partly on its own testing that detected trace amounts of bisphenol A in formula, along with separate testing conducted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
The finding prompted the organization to approach manufacturers to find out whether the presence of the chemical was due to leaching from packaging. All the companies contacted, during October and November, provided information on the composition of their containers.
According to its survey, only Abbott of the big four manufacturers tests formula to see whether it contains bisphenol A. The company said it didn't detect the chemical, although Environmental Working Group said it was able to find the plastic in formula sold by the company that it had analyzed.
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