Page 42 - Baking Europe Journal - Winter 2022

PACKAGING
42 FOOD SAFETY

many “biodegradable” plastic recycling streams are often mixed over time creating a greater potential
products might never actually with materials never intended for food for migration into food.
biodegrade in home compost or contact. For paper products this
when littered. Furthermore, the includes items such as newspapers, Lightweighting
chemical additives are usually not magazines and thermal receipts while Many companies are concerned
addressed at all, so many of these food grade plastics may be mixed about the CO emissions caused by
2
potentially hazardous chemicals may with cosmetic containers or transportation, so they try to lower
ultimately end up polluting the occasionally waste electronics. the weight of the packaging. For
compost or environment. Consumers Non-food-grade materials can be a example, this may be done by
can, therefore, unknowingly create source of NIAS in recycled food switching from glass to plastic, or
problems for their local recycling and packaging and because paper and from a single material plastic to a
composting facilities when trying to plastics are chemically active, those blend of materials. While this might
dispose of “biodegradable” plastic substances can migrate into food. reduce weight, switching to complex,
products. Notably, the same can be non-inert materials can in some cases
true for paper that contains hazardous Typical recycling-related increase human and environmental
chemicals like water and grease- contaminants for paper products exposure to hazardous chemicals due
repellent PFAS chemicals. include mineral oil hydrocarbons, to migration.
bisphenols, phthalates, and
Increasing recycled content photoinitiators; and in plastics, also Solutions to challenges such as this
Recycling is currently a necessary fl avour compounds, oligomers and are best solved by unrestrictive
part of reducing resource additives from the recycling process. thought processes i.e. to use a
consumption, but FCMs thrown in These contaminants can concentrate common expression “think outside
the box” – (Or as we say here at
“Sustainability is not only Baking Europe, don’t even get in the
box! Baking Europe Ed.)
achieved through meeting Sustainability is not only achieved

carbon targets.” through meeting CO emission
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targets. All related areas also need

BAKINGEUROPE Winter 2022/2023
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