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    • EDF Health

    Chemical Concerns – Insights on Air Pollution, Public Health, and Chemical Safety

    On January 20, The European Union will mark the one-year anniversary of its ban on most uses of bisphenol A (BPA), including in food contact materials like plastic food containers, cans and can linings, cartons and much more. (Getty)

    The European Union marks one year of its BPA ban…where is the FDA??

    Posted: in General interest

    Written By

    Maricel Maffini, PhD, Consultant Maria Doa, PhD, Senior Director, Chemicals Policy
    Maricel Maffini, PhD, Consultant & Maria Doa, PhD, Senior Director, Chemicals Policy

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    What’s new: January 20, 2026 marks the first-year anniversary of the European Union’s (EU) ban on most uses of bisphenol A (BPA) on most uses of bisphenol A (BPA) — an industrial chemical that’s commonly used in household plastics and food packaging. The 2025 regulation, which includes an 18-month phase-out, prohibits the use of BPA in several food contact materials including plastics, coatings, varnishes, inks and adhesives.

    The EU’s decision to ban most BPA uses is supported by the 2023 European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA) risk assessment, which found that the amount of BPA that’s safe for daily human consumption is 20,000 times less than what its 2015 assessment had found.

    Why it matters: EFSA’s latest risk assessment found that BPA exposure could lead to an overactive immune system, causing out-of-control inflammation. BPA has also been linked to disruptions of the endocrine system, harming reproduction and inhibiting learning and memory. Research has shown that the immune system is most sensitive to BPA exposure, which can cause disruptions that weaken it and make the body more vulnerable to disease.

    Americans face similar widespread exposure to BPA in their daily lives as EU residents did before last year’s ban. A survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that approximately 95% of Americans tested have BPA in their bodies, with children facing the highest levels. BPA has been detected in blood, urine, sweat, amniotic fluid and breast milk.

    In 2022, EDF and our allies submitted a food additive petition asking the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to 1) limit BPA in food by revoking approvals for using it in adhesives and can coatings and 2) set strict limits on using BPA in plastic that contacts food. FDA has not yet made a decision on our petition, despite a legally-mandated 180-day deadline.

    Our take: While Europe moves forward, the FDA has  still not taken substantive action. That inaction is a decision. It means BPA continues to be allowed in the foods American families eat every day. It’s been 1,320 days since the agency filed our petition. The delay continues to put our health at risk.  

    Maricel Maffini is an independent consultant focused on human and environmental health and chemical safety.

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