PVC thermoformed containers for food packaging: establishment of a rapid extraction test for overall migration limit compliance testing

In order to demonstrate compliance with the overall migration limit given in amended EC Directive 90/128/EEC, overall migration tests are usually performed on the finished food packaging with food stimulants. For packaging converters, in particular, who thermoform a wide range of containers from an extruded sheet, the cost of testing for compliance can be prohibitive. However, the Directive also allows compliance to be demonstrated by use of a ‘more severe test’. In this study a ‘more severe test’ has been developed for PVC and VC/VA co-polymer materials involving extraction with methanol or a methanol/water mixture and evaporation to dryness. This procedure has been optimised so that it is simple and rapid to perform and gives slightly higher results for the extruded sheet compared to overall migration tests conducted with fatty and aqueous food simulants. Results are presented demonstrating the rapid extraction test to be a ‘more severe test’ and that it could be used by converters in conjunction with good manufacturing practice (GMP) to demonstrate compliance with the overall migration limit in a cost-effective way. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of ionizing treatments on packaging -food simulant combinations

Research relating to ionizing treatment has been carried out on ‘food simulants polyethylene film’ combinations. Pouches have been irradiated by gamma photons or accelerated electrons at a 10kGy dose. Overall, the migration test has given some interesting results, particularly in the case of acid simulant, where a limit of validity has been found for the overall migration method. Many radiolytic products and degradation reactions have been indicated, and it has been established that the high permeability of packaging film to oxygen had influenced the radiolytic product yields. The results show some interactions between packaging film and food simulant under irradiation conditions.     

油墨溶剂在食品软包装中的残留及迁移规律

目的研究油墨溶剂在食品软包装材料中的残留及迁移行为,为食品包装生产企业提供安全风险控制方面的参考。方法采用顶空气相色谱-质谱联用(HS-GC-MS)技术,对印刷油墨的挥发性溶剂在食品软包装中的残留进行定性定量分析,以检出率较高的苯类溶剂甲苯、酯类溶剂乙酸丁酯和酮类溶剂丁酮为迁移研究对象,分别以PE,PP,PET/CPP,PET/PE,OPP/CPP,PET/PA/CPP为包装材料,研究油墨溶剂在水性食品模拟液(蒸馏水)、酸性食品模拟液(体积分数为3%的乙酸)、醇性食品模拟液(体积分数为10%的乙醇)和脂肪性模拟液(正己烷)中的迁移残留行为。结果研究表明,印刷后的食品软包装材料中大部分都有苯类、酯类和酮类等有机挥发物的残留,残留溶剂在食品模拟液中迁移量的大小依次为正己烷乙醇(体积分数为10%)乙酸(体积分数为3%)蒸馏水,而且对于不同的包装材料迁移量的大小也不同。结论油墨溶剂在食品软包装材料上的残留和迁移行为,主要与环境温度、食品性质以及包装材料的性能有关。     

Attributes of packaging and influences on waste

An important area of focus for the reduction of domestic waste is packaging and food packaging specifically. At some point in the life of packaging in the consumers' home, the packaging goes through a transition from something of use, of value and of worth to the consumer to something that is no longer any of these. Being able to indentify attributes of packaging that might have an impact on this transitional point to change the use or value so that the packaging is re‐used, recycled or composted rather than being landfilled is very important in successfully diverting packaging waste from landfill. This research aimed to conduct a variety of tests to indentify attributes of packaging that have an influence on the eventual waste route and to determine what that influence was. The research included an extensive literature study looking at consumer test methods, current waste and packaging waste studies, and packaging design literature. This was followed by a series of four tests: ‘bin raids’, ‘digital diary’, ‘visual survey’ and ‘ethnography’. These tests were designed to determine how consumers would treat specific examples of packaging in an end‐of‐life scenario and what influences those decisions. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Investigations on Overall Migration of Various Plastic Materials and Articles Used in Contact with Foodstuffs

The results of overall migration tests for a wide range of plastic packagings and other domestic and imported articles made of plastic intended to come into direct contact with foodstuffs are presented. In these tests the simulants specified in Directive 85/572/EEC as well as isooctane and 95% ethanol (so called alternative substances) have been used. Checking the overall migration into the four simulants specified in the above mentioned Directive it was found that the limit (equal to 10 mg/dm² according to Directive 90/128/EEC) was exceeded in a few, very specific, cases. Comparison between overall migration from some articles into sunflower oil and isooctane was also examined. The results indicate that though the use of isooctane as an alternative substance significantly simplifies the testing procedure, exceeding an overall migration limit into isooctane is not equivalent to exceeding the limit of migration into sunflower oil. In such cases only migration into typical fatty food simulants can have a deciding meaning. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Novel Test Approach for Evaluating and Modelling Barrier Properties of Food Contact Materials Against Mineral Oil Contaminants

A method for testing the mineral oil barrier properties of packaging materials has been developed as a response for the concerns on contamination of food by mineral oil compounds. The aim was to provide an efficient tool to evaluate packaging materials with respect to this. The method is a modification of the so‐called cup test using model compounds comparable with mineral oil components with different length and configuration of the hydrocarbon chain. The model compounds are introduced in the gas phase as penetrants. The absorbed amounts, which have migrated through the barrier, are analysed from a food simulant or powdered sugar. The method has been validated for coated and non‐coated boards. Compared with folding boxboard without polymer coating, polyethylene terephthalate‐coated board reduces the amount of the C16 compound in food simulant after 7‐day tests by a factor of 30. An extended migration model describing sorption mechanisms to both food simulant and fibres in the packing material has been developed. The model simulations for folding boxboard indicate that fibres absorb a significant proportion of the compounds when molecular weight increases. This retards the migration significantly compared with the speed expected by diffusion mechanism only. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Measure for Measure: Pack Performance versus Human Dexterity and Grip Strength

‘Openability’ of food and beverage packaging has been shown to be problematic for older consumers. Pressure on resources has seen the use of packaged food and beverages increase in hospitals within the New South Wales region of Australia. Studies at the University of Wollongong have explored the interaction between older people and the types of packages regularly encountered in the delivery of hospital food and nutrition. As these types of packs are commonly found in UK hospitals as well, a series of studies have been undertaken by the University of Wollongong, Australia, and Sheffield Hallam University, UK, to further evaluate the issues surrounding the ‘openability’ of hospital food and beverage packaging in an attempt to understand in detail the issues leading to difficulty in use. Current methods of pack ‘ease of opening’ evaluation rely on hand strength as the core parameter. Our studies examine the role of dexterity in addition to hand strength in pack opening. Water bottles, single portion drink cartons and cheese portions were among the poorest performing packs. Dexterity, rather than strength is found to be a sensitive and reliable method to understand the issues surrounding the poor pack performance, and a repeatable way of comparing different pack formats is presented. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The use of uncertainty analysis for the design of container closures

Understanding how easy packaging is to open is becoming a major area of interest for the packaging industry. Designing packaging to meet the direct needs of the consumer has been termed ‘inclusive design’. However, there are differing parameters that may affect the ease of opening a product. This paper outlines how the use of uncertainty analysis coupled with ‘inclusive design’ techniques can help manufacturers understand which parameters are important for product ‘openability’. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Getting to grips with packaging: using ethnography and computer simulation to understand hand–pack interaction

The general population of many developed countries is aging. Despite many medical advances, aging brings with it a host of issues, not least of all the loss of strength and dexterity. Hence, everyday functions that were easily performed at a younger age can become difficult or even impossible. One major area of concern is the ability of elderly consumers to access food or medicines from packaged goods such as jars, bottles and child‐resistant closures. Many consumers avoid food in jars or have problems with medical compliance. Recently, the authors developed a new approach to packaging design termed the ‘three‐stranded approach’. Here, they outline numerical, experimental and analytical techniques for matching pack function to human ability. Within this work it became apparent that developing a more detailed understanding of how packaging is manipulated and gripped would be of use to packaging designers and engineers and hence enable the manufacture of easier‐to‐open packaging. This paper outlines some preliminary studies on the development of a computational model of a human hand as a tool for packaging design, and a supporting study on the various grips used by consumers. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Requirements for packaging from an ageing consumer's perspective

The overall objective of this research was to explore ageing consumers' attitudes towards currently available food packaging in New Zealand. Ninety‐nine individuals (over the age of 60) in New Zealand were surveyed to determine packaging attributes of importance when selecting food products. This was followed with a focus group of 13 individuals to discuss improvements to packaging. Frequencies of responses were calculated for the survey data, and cross‐tabulations and chi‐square tests were used to determine the relationships between variables. Price, safety, size of packaging and ability to recycle were of most importance to these individuals. Problems encountered with food packaging included tight lids, small printing and spillage during opening. Of the types of package closures investigated, opening of packages, rather than resealing of packages proved problematic. Fifty percent or more of respondents indicated that peelable induction seals, lug closures and continuous thread closures were problems that occurred ‘very often’ or ‘frequently’. Sixty‐one percent of the participants surveyed had asked for assistance opening some types of packages, and this was particularly prevalent among individuals who had weakness in their arms, hands or wrists. Changes to package closures suggested during the focus groups included increasing the size of twist off caps, larger ring pulls on aluminium cans and including more sliding resealable closures on foil and plastic packaging. Larger printing on labels was also recommended by the participants. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. This article was published online on 1^st December 2008. An error was subsequently identified. This notice is included in the online and print versions to indicate that both were corrected on 19^th March 2009.     

Safety and quality of plastic food contact materials. Optimization of extraction time and extraction yield,based on arithmetic rules derived from mathematical description of diffusion. Application to control strategies

Migration of packaging constituents into food may raise concerns about food safety. This paper describes the conclusions of a EU research project (AIR 941025), aiming to facilitate the introduction of migration control into good manufacturing practice and into enforcement policies. The first part describes a re‐evaluation of analytical approaches to extract and identify potential migrants released by plastic materials, viz. comparison of analytical methods, choice of extraction solvents and of fat simulants. Here we focus on the extraction time needed to achieve a given extraction yield. By correlating these parameters with simple and practical equations, it is possible to design alternative tests for control of compliance of packaging plastics. Using a reference experiment (where there is good agreement between experimental and calculated kinetic curves), it is possible to calculate the percentage of extraction which can be achieved in a given time, or the time necessary to reach a target extraction level for other polymer/solvent combinations. A global control scheme is proposed, which indicates whether and when calculation and testing should be applied. Guidelines are proposed, and can be adapted to both industrial control and to enforcement laboratories. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

纳米ZnO复合食品抗菌包装膜研究进展

目的介绍纳米氧化锌在食品抗菌包装膜中的研究现状。方法总结纳米氧化锌在包装膜材中的应用,并指出当前研究的不足和未来研究趋势。结论纳米Zn O的粒径、形貌、分散性、活化程度、添加量等对其在不同包装基材系统中的抗菌效果有很大的影响。纳米Zn O在不同包装基材中的迁移研究还不完善,需要进一步研究其迁移机理,预测其迁移模型。单一添加纳米Zn O的研究较多,纳米Zn O与具有其他功能物质复合使用的研究较少,而复合使用是未来纳米Zn O复合抗菌包装研究领域的重点。     

包装材料化学物迁移研究

食品安全问题已经成为全球广泛关注的焦点,食品包装安全是食品安全的重要组成部分.文中食品聚合物包装材料成份迁移的试验分析方法和数学模型作简要综述.     

Comparison between thermal and microwave treatment on the overall migration of plastic materials intended to be in contact with foods

The results are presented of overall migration testing of a wide range of plastic packaging, intended to come into direct contact with foodstuffs, after microwave cooking. The values for overall migration obtained for all the plastic materials tested are significantly below the limit required by Directive 90/128/EEC. Among the materials tested, it can be pointed out that PVC is the material whose overall migration increases most significantly after microwave cooking, and it is also affected by aqueous simulants in contact with it. Acetic acid promotes migration for PVC after microwave cooking. The results have been compared with overall migration of same samples at normal conditions (40°C for 10 days), and after thermal treatment at 80°C and 121°C for 30 minutes. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

再生纤维素食品包装材料应用进展及法规研究

目的 归纳总结再生纤维素基材料在食品包装行业的研究进展及各国法规情况,以促进再生纤维素在食品包装领域的应用和发展,同时确保其符合相关法规和标准,保障食品安全。方法 对再生纤维素概况及制备方法进行简要介绍,对再生纤维素在食品包装领域的研究进行详细综述,对再生纤维素在食品包装领域的应用前景及存在的困难进行总结及展望。结果 溶解与再生在再生纤维素制备过程中发挥着至关重要的作用;再生纤维素已经在抗菌、防腐、抗紫外线及抗水蒸气阻隔食品包装领域取得了一定的研究进展;目前不同国家和地区已经制定了相关的法规但仍存在一定差异。结论 再生纤维素已经成为新型包装材料的有力候选者之一,但仍需要在制备方法、法规制定等方面进行改进,以推动再生纤维素行业的持续健康增长和创新。     

Silicon Migration from High‐barrier Coated Multilayer Polymeric Films to Selected Food Simulants after Microwave Processing Treatments

The use of microwave (MW) technology for in‐package food sterilization and pasteurization has the potential for widespread use in the food industry. Because the use of MW technology requires that food be processed inside its packaging, the interaction between food and its packaging during processing must be studied to ensure package integrity as well as consumer safety. In this study, two commercially available multilayer films developed for retort sterilization were evaluated for their suitability to MW processing. Film A was composed of oriented nylon//coated polyethylene terephthalate//cast polypropylene (CPP); film B consisted of oriented nylon//coated nylon//CPP with overall oxygen transmission rates <0.2 cc/m². day. Silicon (Si) was a major component in the coated polyethylene terephthalate layer and food‐contact CPP layer. This study evaluated the influence of MW processing on Si migration from films into selected food‐simulating liquids (FSLs; water and 3% acetic acid) using inductively coupled plasma‐mass spectroscopy, as compared with conventional thermal processing. This study also assessed migration of Si into FSL in terms of process temperature (70–123 °C) and time (18–34 min). A Fourier transform infrared spectrometer was used to evaluate the stability of the silicon–oxygen (Si–O) bonds in the metal‐oxide coated and food‐contact layer of the packaging film. Overall, there were no significant differences (p > 0.05) between the level of Si migration from films to FSL and the stability of Si–O–Si bonds during MW processing as compared with the conventional thermal processing. However, we found that the final processing temperature and time had a significant (p < 0.05) impact on Si migration into the FSL. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Environmental assessment of food packaging: Impact and improvement

Food packaging plays an important role in carrying food and drink from production sites to the consumers, and environmental aspects of this packaging receive considerable attention. As the functions of packaging are derived from the actual food requirements, environmental aspects of packaging should be compared with those of the food for a balanced optimization of environmental impact. The outcome of such combined analysis is illustrated with a macroscale analysis of the actual food supply situation in The Netherlands. An ‘overall’ survey of this system is used to indicate important interrelations between the subsystems and to estimate the order of magnitude of the environmental impact of each part of the system. The major environmental effects of the total food supply system and both impact and influence of the packaging subsystem are quantified in mass and energy terms. It is concluded that more attention should be given to matching the actual and varied demand of different size consumption groups, and suggestions are given for effective incorporation of environmental constraints into product development and packaging design.     

Effect of high‐pressure food processing on the mass transfer properties of selected packaging materials

The effect of high‐pressure processing (HPP) on the total migration into distilled water and olive oil and on the barrier properties of four complex packaging materials were evaluated. The films were polyethylene/ethylene‐vinyl‐alcohol/polyethylene (PE/EVOH/PE), metallized polyester/polyethylene, polyester/polyethylene (PET/PE), and polypropylene‐SiOx (PPSiOx). Pouches made from these films were filled with food simulants, sealed and then processed at a pressure of 400 MPa for 30 min, at 20 or 60°C. Pouches kept at atmospheric pressure were used as controls. Prior to and after treatment, all films were evaluated for their barrier properties (oxygen transmission rate and water vapour transmission rate) and ‘Total’ migration into the two food simulants. In the case of water as the food stimulant, a low ‘Total’ migration was observed and even a lower one after the HPP treatment. In the case of oil as the food simulant, a higher ‘Total’ migration was found compared to the control as a result of damage to the structures during the HPP treatment. The gas permeability of the films increased after the HPP, compared to the control, due to damages in the structure caused during the treatment. The PET/PE film presented minimum changes in properties after HPP. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Migration of alkylbenzenes from packaging into food and Tenax®

Alkylbenzenes (alkyl chain C₁₀–C₁₃) are used as solvent components in certain offset printing inks. Alkylbenzenes were identified from 10 out of 15 samples of offset‐printed food packaging made of board. Printed hamburger collars intended for hamburger restaurants had exceptionally high contents of alkylbenzenes (70–500 mg/kg). Most of the collars had varnish on both the printed surface and the non‐printed food contact surface. Migration of alkylbenzenes from the hamburger collar into a roll was 2 mg/kg. In another test, in which Tenax^® was used as simulant, the effect of a varnish layer on the food contact surface was studied. It was found that the varnish layer reduced migration by about 70%. Tests with Tenax^® as a food simulant resulted in higher migration than in tests with rolls. The European Commission has published a risk assessment report on alkylbenzenes. The report concludes that there is no need for further testing or for risk reduction measures beyond those which are currently applied. However, consumer exposure was calculated without taking into account the possibility of oral exposure to alkylbenzenes migrating from food packagings. The migration of alkylbenzenes thus merits further study. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

冷冻包装食品“返霜”原因探讨

冷冻包装食品“返霜”的影响因素很多,工艺控制人员常常认为返霜的主要因素包括包装间的温度过高、包冰衣水温过高、或未及时入库造成货物解冻等因素,本文介绍的相关实验证明,上述因素虽有影响,但并非主要因素,因此不必要求过于严格的包装间环境条件。返霜的主要原因是冷库温度的波动,可采用低温蓄冷器来稳定冷库温度。