Authorities around the world have repeatedly investigated and confirmed the safety of BPA in its intended applications. This includes also a “positive listing” for the use of BPA-based polycarbonate plastic in consumer food contact applications.
In January 2015, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) published its final scientific opinion on the safety of Bisphenol A (BPA). It combines the authority‘s assessment of both exposure and health aspects and considers comments received from national authorities and stakeholders following extensive engagement and consultation. The new assessment covers exposure from food sources along with exposure from a range of other potential sources, and considers all age groups of the population. It concludes: Exposure from all sources is very low and well below the new safe limit for all age groups - BPA-based products are safe for consumers.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Health Canada, the WHO and many more regulatory agencies worldwide concluded, based on the weight of the large amount of scientific evidence, that there is no human health concern from this chemical intermediate if used as intended. The European Commission´s Risk Assessment of Bisphenol A investigated both potential risks to human health as well as to the environment. It found that BPA and BPA-based materials are safe in current applications.
EFSA found human exposure to BPA is very small, and even lower than previously estimated.
In the environment, BPA rapidly decomposes and does not accumulate. Levels of BPA that might be detected are very low, typically less than one part per billion in surface water. Such trace levels are not regarded to have an adverse effect on the environment.
For more information: