As part of its consumer health protection role, the EDQM helps ensure the safety of FCMs in Europe, providing the Secretariat for the European Committee for Food Contact Materials and Articles (CD-P-MCA). The CD-P-MCA has issued numerous resolutions related to the safety and quality of food contact materials, and technical guides for business operators along the supply chain, inspectors and regulators.

This symposium provides updates on European regulations and recommendations that apply to food packaging, appliances and utensils on the market, as well as national perspectives on best practices related to product safety and testing for compliance.

Key topics covered include:

• an overview of the work, guiding principles and achievements of the CD-P-MCA;
• an update on the harmonisation of rules for FCMs in Europe;
• essential updates on release testing, compliance and enforcement activities;
• presentation of the prospects for innovative safe and sustainable materials, together with related challenges;
• different views from health ministries, authorities, industry associations and consumers.

This event was hosted by the Centro Nacional de Alimentación (CNA) laboratory, which belongs to the Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (AESAN).

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Target audience

This symposium is of interest to professionals in the FCM industry and product control, official control laboratories, European and national authorities as well as national policy makers.

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18 September 2024

Session I: Harmonisation of FCM rules in Europe

• The Council of Europe’s European Committee on Food Contact Materials and Articles (CD-P-MCA) and its Secretariat, Laurent MALLET and Susanne BAHRKE, EDQM, Council of Europe
• Achievements: Guiding principles for food contact materials (FCM) and technical guides on FCM
  • Resolution CM/Res(2020)9 - Guiding principles for food contact materials, Katharina ADLER, BMEL, Germany, and Chair of the CD-P-MCA
  • Technical guide on metals and alloys used in FCM, Ingo Ebner, Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR), Germany
  • Technical guide on documentation supporting compliance and safety of FCM, Stefan Kucsera, Federal Department of Home Affairs (FDHA), Switzerland
  • Paper and board used in FCM, Thomas Schwartz, Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES), Austria
• Contributions of consumer organisations to food safety, Pelle Moos, The European Consumers’ Organisation (BEUC), Belgium
• Producers/users of Food Contact Materials
  • The paper industry and its commitment to food safety, Victoria Trujillo, Spanish Association of Pulp and Paper Manufacturers (ASPAPEL), Spain
  • Safety and compliance of food contact materials, a brand owner prospective, Claudia Pasti, Nestlé Research, Switzerland
• Official control and enforcement
  •  The true reality of official control: Observations from border and manufacturing site inspections, Catia Simoes, DGAV Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Portugal
  • Official controls in France, Benjamin Teneul, General Directorate for Consumption and Repression of Fraud (DGCCRF), France

Session III : Compliance testing

• Analytical challenges in FCM testing, Lydia Richter, Chemisches und Veterinäruntersuchungsamt (CVUA) Stuttgart, Germany

19 September 2024

Session IV: Prospects for better regulation of food safety

• EU rules on FCM - present and future, Jonathan BRIGGS, European Commission
• A national perspective
  • Transposing technical guides of the Council of Europe in Belgian and Benelux legislation, Elis Heyvaert, Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment (FPS), Belgium
  • Complementarity of the Turkish Food Codex on Food Contact Materials and Council of Europe Recommendations and Guidance, Hatice Uslu Yilmaz, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Türkiye
• Planned CD-P-MCA work
  • Technical guidance on cork, Paula Bico, DGAV Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Portugal
  • Technical guidance on enamels, Viviana Golja, National Institute of Public Health (NIPH), Slovenia
• Scientific work on selected FCM, with a focus on materials with no specific measures in EU legislation
  • New FCM and analytical tools for risk assessment, Cristina Nerin, University of Zaragoza, Spain
  • Criteria and analytical strategy for the safety assessment of medium density fibreboard (MDF) for food contact, Juana Bustos, Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (AESAN) - National Food Centre (CNA), Spain
  • Replacement of single use plastics SUP/ articles for re-use - Alternative FCM to replace SUP and substances with the potential to migrate into food, Bianca VAN DE VEN, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), the Netherlands
  • Migratables from paper and board FCM and potential risks, Melanie Di Mario, Sciensano, Belgium

About Agencia Española de Seguridad Alimentaria y Nutrición (AESAN)

The Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (or AESAN) is a regulatory agency that is part of the Spanish Ministry of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs and 2030 Agenda. The Centro Nacional de Alimentación (National Centre for Food, CNA) belongs to the AESAN and provides technical and scientific support and laboratory testing for the detection of chemical and biological contaminants, acting as a national reference laboratory in the fields where it has been designated according to the law.

Agencia Española de Seguridad Alimentaria y Nutrición