Migration testing on Food Contact Materials | Geo-Chem Middle East

Web Analytics

Migration testing on Food Contact Materials

Our Food Contact Materials migration testing involves overall and specific migration testing on food packaging, kitchen utensils.

Within the area of food contact materials, migration limits have been set for many substances based on the toxicological risk assessment of these substances. These limits are included in Food Contact regulations with the aim to control the exposure to these substances to protect our health.

Migration is the transfer of chemical substances from food contact materials into food.

For plastic materials two types of migration limits have been established in Commission Regulation (EU) No. 10/2011.

Overall migration: The Overall Migration limit (OML) applies to the sum of all substances that can migrate from the food contact material to the food (or food simulant). The overall migration limit is a measure for the inertness of the material.

Specific migration: A Specific Migration Limit (SML) applies to an individual substance and is based on toxicological studies. Analytical techniques are used to identify the presence of these substances in food (and food simulants).

For demonstrating compliance with the migration limits food simulants are assigned to perform migration tests.

In order to achieve comparable results in the verification of compliance with the migration limits testing should be performed under standardized test conditions including testing time, temperature and test medium (food simulant) representing worst foreseeable conditions of use of the plastic material or article The (EU) No. 10/2011 d introduces separate rules for testing conditions for OML and SML testing.