BASA Seminar: Food Packaging - Calculating Migressives

BASA Seminar: Food Packaging - Calculating Migressives

Wednesday May 5th or 12th, 2010, Sketchley Grange Hotel, Hinkley, Leicestershire.

This one day seminar includes a free copy of the industry approved Migration shareware. It has been organised by The British Adhesives Industry Association and is for: 

• Adhesive companies supplying the packaging industry
• Packaging converters
• Others with an interest in food contact and substance migration.

The European Commission is moving towards new, tighter regulations for materials in contact with food. Plastics are already regulated but packaging adhesives, which draw upon a palette of approx. 4000 substances with a typical formulation composed of up to 15 components, have no formal method for determining migrates into foodstuffs. This seminar meets these requirements.

The adhesives industry has completed a three-year project (‘Migresives’), part funded by the EU, to demonstrate that self-calculation is viable and develop software for the Packaging Converter to use.

In practical terms the results have produced a computer modeling tool that will calculate the level of any migrates from the adhesives and provide industry, especially converters and adhesive small and medium sized enterprises, with a tool to ensure that migration from adhesives is in compliance with regulatory requirements.

Background

Like all components of food contact materials, adhesives must be compliant to Article 3 of EU Regulation 1935/2004, which means: No transfer of substances on/into the food in amounts which could endanger human health. But no specific regulation in EU or member states defines how to implement this requirement.  As a result many of the estimated 30,000 European converters are finding it difficult to comply with the EU requirements, however, the food industry itself is becoming increasingly concerned about compliance.
 
At present converters ask adhesive suppliers for a certificate of composition. The supplier lists the substances in the formulation and which ones are approved under the plastics directive or national law. (BASA members use a template certificate).

*The results of the ‘Migresives’ study will contribute to the larger, longer-term food industry study into chemical exposure in foodstuffs (FACET = Flavourings, Additives and Food Contact materials Exposure Task), which is expected to form the backbone for future regulation.            

To book  a place for this Seminar CLICK HERE