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Inorganic Contaminants of Food as a Function of Packaging Features

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Book cover Food Packaging Hygiene

Part of the book series: SpringerBriefs in Molecular Science ((BRIEFSCHEFO))

Abstract

Metals are the most abundant group of chemical elements on the earth’s crust and can be found in all foods. Some of them are essential to the diet, within certain specific tolerances, while others are present as contaminants and pose a risk to the human health. The knowledge of the risk by metal contamination in foodstuffs is an argument of great importance. Along the production chain, foods may come in contact with metals at different stages of the production process: parts of industrial plants, storage tanks, tools and mainly primary packaging. Some packaging materials are metallic; in other situations (plastics, etc.), metals are only one of components with a specific role. After an introduction on the international legislation, this chapter examines the main types of food containers—from metallic to plastic ones—considering the function of the metal, both as structural material or additive. For each material and packaging, factors affecting the related risk of contamination are analysed. Some case studies are examined referring to stainless steel, tinplate, aluminium, plastics and innovative packaging. The chapter concludes with a critical review with relation to some examples of metal concentration found in preserved foods, with a particular focus on heavy metals.

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Abbreviations

Al:

Aluminium

As:

Arsenic

b.w.:

Body weight

Cd:

Cadmium

Ca:

Calcium

CDC:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Cr:

Chromium

Co:

Cobalt

Cu:

Copper

ECCS:

Electro-coated chromium steel

ENM:

Engineered nanomaterial

EDI:

Estimated daily intake

EFSA:

European Food Safety Authority

EU:

European Union

FAO:

Food and Agriculture Organization

FACET:

Flavourings, Additives and Food Contact materials Exposure Task

FCM:

Food contact material

ICP-MS:

Inductively coupled plasma—mass spectrometry

TOF-ICP-MS:

Inductively coupled plasma-time of flight-mass spectrometry

Fe:

Iron

JECFA:

Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives

Pb:

Lead

LoQ:

Limit of quantification

Li:

Lithium

Mg:

Magnesium

Hg:

Mercury

DM:

Ministerial Decree

Ni:

Nickel

AFC:

Panel on Food Additives, Flavourings, Processing Aids and Food Contact Materials

ppb:

Part per billion

ICP-AES:

Plasma atomic emission inductively coupled spectroscopy

PP-g-PAA:

Polypropylene-grafted-poly(acrylic acid)

PE:

Polyethylene

PTWI:

Provisional tolerable weekly intake

RASFF:

Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed

SML:

Specific migration limit

SSICA:

Stazione Sperimentale per l’Industria delle Conserve Alimentari

THQ:

Target hazard quotient

Sn:

Tin

TFS:

Tin-free steel

Ti:

Titanium

V:

Vanadium

Zn:

Zinc

WHO:

World Health Organization

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  1. Experimental Station for the Food Preserving Industry (SSICA), Viale Tanara, 31/a, 43121, Parma, Italy

    Angela Montanari

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  1. Angela Montanari
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Correspondence to Angela Montanari .

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Montanari, A. (2015). Inorganic Contaminants of Food as a Function of Packaging Features. In: Food Packaging Hygiene. SpringerBriefs in Molecular Science(). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-14827-4_2

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