Food contact coatings - European legislation and future predictions

Metal cans have long been widely used for packaging a variety of foods and beverages. Many modern metal cans - both steel and aluminium - have internal lacquer coatings which act as 'barriers' between the metal surfaces and the food or beverage. These 'barrier' coatings play an important role in maintaining the quality of the food or beverage. Lacquer coatings are also to be found on other metal vessels, containers and articles were there is foodstuff contact, such as industrial food and beverage storage vessels and non-stick domestic cookware. With food safety being of high importance, strict legalisation exists within European countries and this extends to materials and articles which come into contact with foodstuffs. Over 25 years ago the European Commission started work to harmonize the disparate legislation on food contact materials and articles that existed with European Union Member States, with the aims of ensuring protection of health of the consumer and, removing barriers to trade. 'Framework' Directives which cover all 'food contact materials and articles' have been introduced, but detailed work has concentrated mainly on plastics. Although lacquers are essentially polymers and chemically similar to plastics. lacquer coatings on 'non-plastic substrates are not covered by the 'plastics' Directives. A future 'coatings' Directive, which could be introduced within the next few years, will however, most probably follow the format of the plastics Directives. A number of recent European foodstuff surveys which have investigated the presence of the substance known as BADGE (bisphenol A diglycidyl ether), used in food can epoxy lacquers and other can coatings, and other substances used in similar epoxy novolac resins (NOGE), have prompted the European Commission to draft a specific Directive for these substances. This Directive is expected to be adopted early 2001.