The Norwegian Consumer Council’s director warns after frightening findings about BPA in food and beverages

The substance has been on the authorities’ warning list since 2007.

It is called bisphenol A (BPA), and is used in the production of, among other things, canned food packaging. The potentially harmful consequences have been known for a long time:

Neurological damage, reduced immune system, fertility problems, low birth weight for foetuses, overweight and obesity.

– A substance you have to be very concerned about, says the Consumer Council’s director, Inger Lise Blyverket.

In 2023, EFSA (the EU’s food safety authority) came up with a new limit for how much of this substance can be ingested in a day, before it is considered harmful:

0.2 nanograms per kilogram of body weight.

– The European Commission has proposed a ban. It is not possible to stay within that value if you are to live and eat as usual, says Blyverket to Dagbladet.

She spoke to Nettavisen last week about the same topic.

The company Mutti, which produces one of the products in the council’s test, says in a statement that since 2015 it has been working to reduce and eliminate BPA from its cans.

Read the full answer further down in the case.

– No need to wait

The road to a law finally being adopted in the EU system is long and tortuous. It could take years, fears the director. Now she is resoundingly clear in her speech to the authorities:

Ban these substances, and immediately.

– There is no reason to wait for the EU. Much food and drink with BPA is produced in Norway, and the authorities must act. We need quick measures to reduce the levels of this dangerous substance in Norwegian bodies, says the director.

She is convinced that a ban will trigger development in the industry to find alternatives.

Dagbladet has sent the Lead Agency’s statements to the Ministry of Health and asked for a statement from the new Minister of Health, Jan Christian Venstre (Ap). They have not yet responded.

– Went up dramatically

Recently, the Consumer Council carried out a test and an experiment, respectively, on bisphenol A. Both the Lead Agency and leader Truls Gulowsen of the Nature Conservation Association followed a diet with somewhat more canned food and drink than they usually do.

The menu included liver paste, energy drink and salad with canned products. Measurements were taken of their levels before, during and after the experiment.

The results were striking:

– Our BPA levels went up dramatically. My values ​​were 172 times higher than safe levels. There was no scientific study, but this indicates that many Norwegians may have very high BPA levels in their bodies, says the director.

Soda and canned tomatoes

The second part of the project involved testing several food and drink products for BPA. All in the test failed – including Solo super and Mutti tinned tomatoes.

Ringnes tells Dagbladet that they must offer safe, high-quality products to their consumers. Press spokesperson, Nicolay Bruusgaard, says that they are taking the statement from EFSA to heart.

– Work is currently underway in the EU with a regulation banning BPA in foodstuffs. We work together with our packaging suppliers to ensure that we can comply with the new regulation, says Bruusgard.

– Far more vulnerable

The Lead Agency believes there is one reason in particular why the Norwegian authorities should now put in place a ban on express shipping:

– Children have an increased risk of being exposed to BPA; they consume a lot in relation to their body weight. They are also far more vulnerable to chemicals, not least because they are growing and developing. So the potential harmful effects can be even greater on Norwegian children, says the director.

It is Oluf Lorentzen AS that imports Mutti box tomatoes to Norway. They have forwarded Dagbladet a statement from Mutti:

– The safety and quality of our products have always been and will continue to be our highest priority. We recognize the importance of handling this issue responsibly and thoroughly, the company says.

Getting beaten

– Among the pioneers

At the same time, Mutti emphasizes that Polpa chopped tomatoes do not exceed the current EU limit. It is also five times lower than the new limit that comes into force in the summer of 2024 (0.01 mg per kg), they continue.

– Since 2015, we at Mutti have implemented targeted initiatives to reduce and eliminate bisphenol A from our cans, and we have placed ourselves among the pioneers in demanding BPA-free containers.

In accordance with the recent EFSA recommendation, we are working with our box suppliers to:

• Identify potential solutions that are alternatives to epoxy resins (protective coatings) with BPA used on the outside of the cans.
• Perform and validate new types of coatings to confirm their suitability throughout their shelf life.

Do this first

– Confident of the results

This process will take several months, says Mutti.

– We are confident of the results. There is an entire industry that has a keen interest in overcoming this problem. This is no guarantee, but it shows how seriously the situation is taken.

Ringnes says that they are taking on board EFSA’s statement from 2023, where they are reducing the limit for recommended intake of BPA.

– We must offer safe, high-quality products to our consumers. We work together with our packaging suppliers to ensure that we can comply with the new regulation, says Ringnes spokesperson Nicolay Bruusgaard to Dagbladet.

Playing on poison

FHI warned after investigation

In the past year, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health has also warned against BPA in food, through a report from September 2023.

It states that 99.6 percent of the 669 children in the survey had a level of bisphenol A that exceeded what is considered safe.

– The figures from the survey show that there is a need to introduce measures at community level to reduce exposure to BPA and PFAS in the population, said Line Småstuen Haug, head of the Environmental Biobank and senior researcher at FHI, in this regard.

Awaiting a ban, it is no wonder if consumers feel powerless when filling their shopping basket.

Professor worried about findings in fatty fish: – I would think carefully

Alternatives

Blyverket in the Consumer Council says she understands that all the councils can feel overwhelming:

– I understand well that consumers become anxious. However, access to safe goods is an elementary consumer right, so the authorities must take responsibility here, she says.

– What are the alternatives for consumers who want to keep the levels as low as possible?

– Foreign studies indicate that BPA leaks to a lesser extent from cardboard, even though it is also used to make this packaging. Choose alternatives such as glass when possible. And steer clear of food containers that can withstand boiling and heating, where you can ingest more BPA when the plastic breaks down.