UN agencies to hold bisphenol A safety summit

UN agencies to hold bisphenol A safety summit: "Two United Nations bodies are to convene an international meeting on the safety of bisphenol A (BPA) in food packaging over growing anxiety of the chemical’s possible threat to human health.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said the meeting, to be held in Canada in October 2010, was being organised in response to the general uncertainty over the safety of BPA. They pin-pointed the misgivings over a raft of possible adverse human health effects from the chemical on reproduction, the nervous system and on behavioural development, as well as the relatively higher exposure of very young children compared with adults."

Fact or Fiction: Are Canned Foods Slowly ... Killing Us?

Healthy Living on Shine: "But really? How concerned should we be about this warning? I asked Melina Jampolis, M.D., a doctor who specializes in nutrition and healthy eating, and who also happens to be a health expert along with Sanjay Gupta for CNN. Here's what she had to say:

'The data on bisphenol A and levels that are toxic in adult humans is not conclusive so until it is, I think the much bigger problem is the 66 percent of Americans who are overweight or obese, and the fact that the majority of them are not eating fruits and especially vegetables everyday so I would hate to discourage people from eating an inexpensive and readily available year-round source of vegetables like canned tomatoes,' she says. 'Because of the bisphenol A potential, I would not feed them daily to a baby or pregnant of nursing women but using them in a homemade turkey chili or health vegetable soup once a week should really not be a problem in my opinion.'"

Canned tomatoes are KILLERS!!

Mike Rowse: "Not only will you die if hit repeatedly about the head with a large can of tomatoes simply eating them could kill you. A high falutin’ PhD type from MO of all places says the lining of the tomato cans contains bisphenol-A, a synthetic estrogen that not only can make you a woman but can cause heart disease, diabetes and obesity (but only if you eat too many cans). Why not avoid other foods packaged in cans? Good question Sparky. The acidity of tomatoes causes the BPA to leach into the food. So the solution, make your own tomato sauce, spaghetti sauce from home grown tomatoes or use tomatoes in glass jars. Or steal them from your neighbors garden. This will be a good skill to have developed since you’ll need it after Obama causes society to collapse."

Muir Glen Replies to Consumer Letter About BPA: "We Don't Care"

La Vida Locavore: "Thank you for contacting Muir Glen regarding bisphenol A in food packaging. Bisphenol A is a critical component of protective coatings used with metal food packaging and provides important quality and safety features for canned foods."

Scientific and government bodies worldwide have examined the scientific evidence and consistently have reached the conclusion that BPA is not a risk to human health. Recent examples include comprehensive risk assessments in Japan and Europe and a review by an independent panel of experts organized by the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis. The can coatings used in Muir Glen packaging comply with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration requirements for use in food contact applications. These coatings have long played an essential part in food preservation, helping to maintain wholesomeness, nutritional value, and product quality.

We work closely with our suppliers to ensure that all of the food ingredients and packaging materials we use are fully in compliance with U.S. Food and Drug Administration requirements and meet our high quality standards.

We will continue to monitor this situation. If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact us. Your questions and comments are always welcome. For more information on the safety of metal food containers, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration press office may be contacted at (301) 430-2335.

Sincerely,

Brent Taylor