Are Scholle IPN bags and pouches BPA-free?
Recently, there has been an incredible amount of verbal and written media coverage on BPA, which has caused many to wonder if they are being exposed to it, and what the resulting health affects are. Today, within its product portfolio, Scholle IPN has zero bags and pouches that contain–or are made with–BPA. An official letter on this topic has been issued by Kevin Mekaru, Scholle IPN’s Specifications Manager. So, regardless if BPA does or does not have negative health affects, it is not found in Scholle IPN’s bags and pouches; therefore, not a risk to its customers.
What is BPA?
Bisphenol A (BPA) is a molecule most commonly used in the production of polycarbonate (PC) and epoxy resins. Common applications where PC resins are used are automotive light covers, compact disks, and water bottles; overall, it has an excellent combination of clarity, heat resistance, and stiffness. With its outstanding adhesion to a variety of substrates, epoxy resins are commonly used as adhesives and protective coatings.
Within the above mentioned media coverage, some uninformed journalists have made a direct link between BPA and the recycling symbol number 7, which is formally designated as all “Other” materials not included in recycling symbol numbers 1 to 6. While small portions of recycling symbol number 7 packages do contain BPA, the way it has been presented has been misleading.
Often multiple non-BPA materials are combined to satisfy barrier and performance requirements that result in them being classified as recycling symbol number 7. One example of this is Scholle IPN’s HyBar product line, which combines polyethylene terephthalate (PET: recycling symbol number 1) with low density polyethylene (LDPE: recycling symbol number 4) to form a laminated film that has outstanding oxygen protection and physical strength. Simply put, there are many recycling symbol number 7 packages that do not contain BPA.
Information provided by David Bellmore, Director of Film and Fitment Development