SAFETY ASSESSMENT OF MICROWAVE SUSCEPTORS AND OTHER HIGH-TEMPERATURE PACKAGING MATERIALS

A number of packaging materials are being used not only to contain foo d during distribution but also to serve as the cooking container. The higher temperatures that these materials reach led the US Food and Dru g Administration (FDA) to issue an intent to publish new regulations i n 1989. The food and packaging industries responded by conducting exte nsive research and submitting the results to FDA. The methods used and results obtained are discussed. Most of the data were focused on micr owave susceptors and the volatile compounds generated. One project sho wed that for a specific product, popcorn, there was no transfer into t he food. Work is continuing to validate methods to test for non-volati le compounds. In addition to susceptors, various paper and plastic mat erials are used in dual ovenable (microwave and conventional ovens) ap plications. Most of the research on these materials has investigated t he food contact temperatures on testing for migrants. An update on the current regulatory status of packaging materials intended for high te mperature use in the US is discussed.