BPF Featured in the Press

The BPF has recently been in dialogue with the Daily Mail in response to two articles about plastic packaging. Details and the printed responses are available below.

Plastic Bottles Do Not Cause Cancer

Director-General Philip Law prepared the following statement in response to some features of the article citing a study by NYU Langone Medical Center, entitled “The plastic plague: Hormone-disrupting chemicals in everyday things like water bottles DO cause cancer, diabetes, ADHD and autism” 

The European Commission has found that consumers are not at risk from chemicals used in plastics

"Consumer safety is of paramount importance to the plastics industry. UK companies ensure that they comply with strict standards set by the UK and the EU. The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) and European Food Standards Authority (EFSA) regulate the very limited use of specific chemicals alleged to be endocrine-disruptors used in the manufacturing of plastics through legislation such as REACH and Food Contact regulations. The European Commission conducts risk assessment activities to ensure the continued safety of consumers; they have thoroughly examined the chemicals used in plastics manufacturing and found that consumers are not at risk." 

Call for Improved Infrastructure for Disposal And Recycling

A letter from BPF Plastics and Flexible Packaging Group Director Barry Turner was published in the Daily Mail on 6 October in response to its article 'Coffee cups that won't decompose for 30 years', which mentions plastic carrier bag charges and deposit return schemes.

See his response below.

"Litter charges on plastic carrier bags and deposits on plastic bottles don't necessarily lead to less littering (Mail) and nor will reducing the number of plastic bags in circulation. Beach surveys in Australia have shown that the lowest levels of litter were in Victoria where, unlike other states, there's no deposit scheme for bottles but — significantly — a robust anti-litter educational campaign. Products don't litter but, unfortunately, some people do. We in the UK need a zerotolerance approach to littering. Behaviour needs to be tackled through innovative public educational programmes, more effective enforcement of fines and by improving the infrastructure for disposal and recycling. I hope the UK Government will grasp this point when it publishes its proposal for tackling litter later in the year."