Open AccessScientific Opinion on the safety evaluation of the following processes based on BUHLER C technology used to recycle post‐consumer PET into food contact materials “Buhler C” and “FENC”
Author(s) -
Flavourings
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
efsa journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.076
H-Index - 97
ISSN - 1831-4732
DOI - 10.2903/j.efsa.2012.2981
Subject(s) - food contact materials , human decontamination , residence time (fluid dynamics) , pet food , food science , process engineering , food packaging , pellets , pulp and paper industry , environmental science , waste management , materials science , chemistry , geotechnical engineering , engineering , composite material
This scientific opinion of the EFSA Panel on Food Contact Materials, Enzymes, Flavourings and Processing Aids deals with the safety evaluation of the recycling processes ‘’Buhler C” and “FENC” (EC register numbers RECYC037 and RECYC083 respectively) which are based on the same BUHLER C technology. The decontamination efficiency of these processes was demonstrated using the same challenge tests. The input of the BUHLER C technology is washed and dried PET flakes originating from collected post‐consumer PET containers containing no more than 5% of PET from non‐food consumer applications. Through this technology, washed and dried flakes are dried and extruded in a ring extruder into pellets which are further crystallised in a reactor then fed into the Solid State Polymerisation (SSP) reactor. After having examined the challenge tests provided, the Panel concluded that the two steps, the drying and crystallisation step and the SSP step are the most critical steps that determine the decontamination efficiency of the processes. The operating parameters to control the performance of these critical steps are well defined and are the temperature and the residence time for the drying and crystallisation, and the temperature, the gas flow and the residence time for SSP. The operating parameters of these steps in the processes are at least as severe as those obtained from the challenge tests. Under these conditions, it was demonstrated that the recycling processes are able to ensure that the level of migration of potential unknown contaminants into food is below a conservatively modelled migration of 0.1μg/kg food. Therefore the Panel concluded that the recycled PET obtained from these processes intended for the manufacture of materials and articles for contact with all types of foodstuffs for long term storage at room temperature, with or without hotfill is not considered of safety concern.