US following our lead in examining bisphenol A

Canada’s decision to propose listing bisphenol A (BPA) as “toxic” and ban the chemical from baby bottles has set a precedent that U.S. governments and major retailers are following. A bill was introduced this week to prohibit BPA in children’s products and food containers. Senator and presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton is among the bill’s co-sponsors. Ten states, including Maryland and California, are also considering regulation of BPA in consumer products.

“Canada’s leadership on bisphenol A is having a spin off effect internationally,” said Dr. Rick Smith, executive director of Environmental Defence. “It has now become clear that Canada’s action is the beginning of the end for this toxic chemical beyond our borders.”

BPA is found in hard plastic baby bottles, sippy cups and sports bottles, as well as the lining of some food cans. International organizations, expert panels and more than 150 peer-reviewed studies have associated BPA with a variety of health problems (obesity, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, breast cancer and a wide range of developmental problems), at low levels of exposure.

Canada announced recently that it intends to list BPA as “toxic” under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act. The government said it also plans to ban the substance from baby bottles and establish packaging rules.

In the lead-up to the Canadian government’s announcement, dozens of retailers removed polycarbonate products that contain BPA from their shelves, including Sears, Hudson’s Bay Company, Wal-Mart Canada, Home Depot Canada, Mountain Equipment Co-op and Lululemon. Since the Canadian announcement, many new retailers followed suit, including Nalge Nunc International Corporation, the company that produces Nalgene plastic reusable water bottles, some of which contain BPA, and Playtex, maker of polycarbonate baby bottles. A list of retailers now going BPA-free is available on Environmental Defence’s Toxic Nation blog.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is reviewing the safety of BPA with the formation of an agency-wide taskforce to investigate the findings from the National Toxicology Program and Health Canada’s recent assessment. At the same time, the U.S. EPA’s approval process of BPA is being placed under scrutiny.