Green group sues FDA over BPA
by Phyllis Wheeler ~ July 2nd, 2010.
A leading environmental group filed suit Monday against the Federal Drug Administration (FDA), charging it with foot-dragging in protecting the public from bisphenyl A (BPA). BPA is a synthetic estrogen used in food packaging, widely believed to be damaging to health, especially for children and fetuses.
The suit was filed by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) in the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, according to an article from Greenwire published in the New York Times. In it, the NRDC charged the FDA with failing to respond to its October, 2008, petition asking the agency to block use of the chemical in food packaging.
Until this spring, the FDA had maintained that use of BPA is safe. However, recently it adjusted its stance and called for more research on the question. The research is expected to take 18 to 24 months. In the meantime, BPA continues to be used in food packaging, particularly hard clear plastic bottles used for water and soda, and in tin can liners. In addition, it’s liberally used in the thermo paper that we all handle as merchant receipts. The synthetic estrogen is found in more than 90 percent of Americans’ bodies.
Meanwhile, New York State acted to ban BPA in products used by infants and toddlers over the weekend.
