Determination of bisphenol A in, and its migration from, PVC stretch film used for food packaging

Bisphenol A (BPA) is used as an additive in polyvinyl chloride (P VC) products, including stretch films used for food packaging. The BPA contents were investigated of several brands of stretch film bought locally but marketed internationally or throughout Spain and which were presumably produced at different manufacturing plants. Their major components were identified by FTIR (Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry) and horizontal attenuated total reflectance, and the migration of BPA from these materials into the standard European Union food simulants was determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) using both fluorescence (FL) and ultraviolet (UV) detection, the identity of the analyte being confirmed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). The two HPLC detection methods had different detection limits (30 mug l(-1) for UV, 3 mug l(-1) for FL), but afforded virtually identical BPA determinations for the samples tested. BPA contents ranging from 40 to 100 mg kg(-1) were found in three of the five P VC-based films analysed, and a content of 500 mg kg(-1) was found in a fourth; for these determinations, extraction into acetonitrile was used. In standard tests of migration into water, 3% acetic acid and olive oil over 10 days at 40degreesC, migration from a given film was in all cases greatest into olive oil. Migration from the films with non-zero BPA contents ranged from 3 to 31 mug dm(-2), values higher than those reported for many other food-contact materials, but lower than the European Union specific migration limit for BPA. PVC stretch film nevertheless may make a significant contribution to contamination of foodstuffs by BPA, and should be taken into account in estimating BPA intake or exposure to this substance.