Polymer and Food Protection Consortium, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, USA.
Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, USA.
Integr Environ Assess Manag. 2021 Jan;17(1):7-12. doi: 10.1002/ieam.4346. Epub 2020 Oct 22.
Food safety authorities and the food industry are focused on uses of perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in various food-contact packaging applications. Not widely known until recently, certain PFAS occur in paper-based packaging materials typically at parts-per-billion to parts-per-million concentrations. These substances are nonintentionally added substances (NIAS) and are attributed to residues from recycled fiber and paperboard used in the manufacture of new food packaging products. Low concentration PFAS detection has generated debate in the food industry and among scientific and governmental organizations about understanding their significance in food-contact products because certain PFAS are intentionally added to some food packaging materials. Distinguishing between both sources of PFAS in food packaging is essential for regulatory compliance purposes. In this paper, we describe ongoing research using contact angle measurement analysis to determine limits of performance (LOP) for perfluorocarboxylic acids (PFCAs) (C4, C6, C8, and C10) on the surface of recycled paper packaging materials. We find that the LOP concentrations for PFCAs ranged from 37 ppm (C10) to higher than 1238 ppm (C4). Because there is no economic justification for the presence of PFAS that do not provide functional performance, these LOP concentrations can reliably be considered as NIAS thresholds. This analytical method and the resulting test data are able to differentiate the source of PFAS in food packaging. Future research will broaden the test method to include measurements of fluorotelomer, sulfonamide, and fluoropolymer substances to develop a more comprehensive understanding of PFAS performance and NIAS concentration thresholds. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2021;17:7-12. © 2020 SETAC.
食品安全部门和食品行业专注于各种食品接触包装应用中全氟烷基物质 (PFAS) 的用途。直到最近才广为人知的是，某些 PFAS 存在于纸基包装材料中，浓度通常为十亿分之几到百万分之几。这些物质是非故意添加物质 (NIAS)，归因于用于制造新食品包装产品的回收纤维和纸板中的残留物。低浓度 PFAS 的检测在食品行业以及科学和政府组织中引发了关于了解其在食品接触产品中重要性的争论，因为某些 PFAS 被有意添加到一些食品包装材料中。为了符合监管要求，区分食品包装中 PFAS 的这两种来源至关重要。在本文中，我们描述了正在进行的研究，该研究使用接触角测量分析来确定回收纸包装材料表面上的全氟羧酸 (PFCAs) (C4、C6、C8 和 C10) 的性能极限 (LOP)。我们发现，PFCAs 的 LOP 浓度范围为 37ppm (C10) 至 1238ppm (C4) 以上。由于不存在为提供功能性能而存在 PFAS 的经济理由，因此可以可靠地将这些 LOP 浓度视为 NIAS 阈值。这种分析方法和由此产生的测试数据能够区分食品包装中 PFAS 的来源。未来的研究将扩大测试方法，包括测量氟端基聚合物、磺酰胺和氟聚合物物质，以更全面地了解 PFAS 的性能和 NIAS 浓度阈值。综合环境评估与管理 2021;17:7-12。©2020SETAC。
