The recycled plastic materials and articles intended to come into contact with food must be sufficiently inert to preclude substances from being transferred to food in quantities large enough to endanger people’s health or can modify the organoleptic properties of the food. Such provisions are contained in the sanitary regulations on recycled plastic materials and articles intended to come into contact with food that were approved by the Government, IPN reports.

According to the Ministry of Health, the safety of food contact materials requires evaluation as chemicals can migrate from the materials into food. The materials should be manufactured in compliance with EU regulations, including good manufacturing practices, so that any potential transfer to foods does not raise safety concerns, change the composition of the food in an unacceptable way or have adverse effects on the quality of foods.

The regulations provide general restrictions and norms for assessing the compliance of recycled plastic materials. These norms are transposed from the European legislation. The regulations will come into force six months after their publication in the Official Gazette.

To adjust the national legislation and norms to the European standards, the Government also approved the sanitary regulations on glass and clay articles intended to come into contact with food. This document will take effect three months after its publication in the Official Gazette.