The regulation of food contact materials in the EU is currently in a state of development, with various aspects still subject to national provisions. General rules that are applicable to all food contact materials are described in the EU framework Regulation on Food Contact Materials. No specific EU regulations yet exist for metal packaging however, the Council of Europe has issued guidelines on metals and alloys used as food contact materials which are currently under revision. These guidelines are intended to assist enforcement authorities, industry and users to ensure compliance with EU framework Regulation.
Can coatings
The CEPE Code of Practice gives professional advice to can coating manufacturers on how to comply with EU Framework Regulation on Food Contact Materials. The application of the Code of Practice is voluntary. Ad-hoc regulations that apply to specific substances have also been published.
Good Manufacturing Practices
The Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) regulation covers aspects of quality assurance which ensure that all food contact materials and articles are consistently produced and controlled to ensure conformity with applicable rules and quality standards. In parallel, the steel for packaging industry has developed its own voluntary GMP guidelines.
Three European standards have been developed for steel for packaging (blackplate, tinplate and ECCS) intended to enter into contact with foodstuffs. In general terms,
- Standard EN 10334 covers the maximum content for alloying and residual elements present in steel (blackplate) used as a substrate for Tinplate/ECCS or as such in other applications.
- Standard EN 10333 covers the composition of the base steel used for the production of tinplate as well as the composition of tin used to coat it.
- Standard EN10335 specifies the base steel to be used and the composition of the metallic coating to be used for the manufacture of lacquered ECCS (electrolytic chromium/chromium oxide coated steel).
EU Food contaminants regulation
Commission Regulation 1881/2006 specifies maximum levels of inorganic tin in canned foods and canned beverages.