Polylactic acid (PLA) is a bio-based polymer used in food packaging. It is marketed as a green alternative to traditional petroleum-based plastics. To attain desired properties like plasticity, heat resistance, and color, manufacturers add chemical additives to the PLA polymer. Previous research has shown that chemical additives in traditional plastics can migrate into food and beverages from the plastic packaging. This is of interest because some of the chemical additives, namely bisphenols and phthalates, are classified as endocrine disrupting compounds. Quantitative chemical data of additives migrating from bio-based plastics has not been previously reported. This research aimed to identify and quantify chemicals that may leach from bio-plastic beverage packaging. Cups and straws made of PLA and petroleum-based plastics were subjected to chemical migration tests using food-contact methods recommended by the US FDA. PLA cups and straws were incubated in simulant solutions that represented sugary, alcoholic, fatty, and acidic foods and beverages. The leachate solutions were extracted using solid phase extraction and analyzed using GCMS and HPLC to identify and quantify bisphenols and phthalates. Preliminary results indicate that some bisphenol and phthalate analogs do migrate from PLA during simulated beverage contact conditions. Quantitative data will be presented in terms of chemical migrant concentration per in<sup>2</sup> of bio-plastic. Comparison of PLA results to traditional plastic migration tests will also be presented as this is useful for human exposure evaluations.<br/>

Investigating the green claims of bio-based plastic by measuring chemical migration during simulated food contact

255th National Meeting (2018)

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