Food Equipment Manufacturers be aware of NEW EU Regulations

Posted: 29th August, 2014 in Engineering Plastics

Parts in contact with food will need to Conform to the European Food Regulation (EU) 10 / 2011

The Regulation (EU) 10/2011 is replacement of Directive 2002/72/EC and is a part of 1935/2004 for plastics materials in contact with food, and specifies much stricter test conditions for migration. Within the EU, compliance is required for all food contact plastic materials.

In an effort to improve the cleanliness and wholesomeness of food products, the European Union has adopted several standards that address potentially unhealthy materials that may contact food products. Since the European Union’s recent introduction of more stringent food contact standards, our Key Manufacturing Partner Quadrant has been focused on the development and certification of advanced polymer materials, giving machinery builders options for new designs and performance upgrades. These standards - which require rigorous compliance data gathering - are driving materials used in food processing and packaging equipment that may be exported or that may be utilized for production of food products destined for specific regional markets.

Quadrant Engineering Plastic Products (EPP) offers fully tested thermoplastic stock shapes complying with the European Union Regulation (EU) 10/2011}. These semi-finished stock shapes are processed and handled according to the regulation and to the consistent quality control guidelines of Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP).

Alperton shall provide our Customers with a Declaration of compliance with the delivery (DCO) according to EN 10204-2.1 that ensures the uninterrupted traceability of the plastic product from the stock shape back to the raw material used by batch. Each production step is tested and documented by Quadrant EPP. (See Sample here)  This allows full traceability and also supports customers in reducing their own in-house product testing time and costs.

Our portfolio of over 30 products was tested

Tests to determine the migration values of Quadrant EPP’s food contact polymer materials were conducted on the thermoplastic stock shapes by independent external laboratory. These tests were performed according to regulation (EU) 10/2011. The portfolio of over 30 products was tested per Overall Migration Limit (OML) and Specific Migration Limit (SML) to measure the material inertness and provide a toxicological evaluation of individual substances. By including the pretested results with the DoC, customers can more easily calculate migration values for their individual applications – a further step in supporting their overall cost-efficiency.

New Food Grade Labelling

 

All of Quadrant's Food Grades, along with this new regulation, are FDA compliant and they will continue to expand their portfolio of EU compliant materials to meet the ever-changing needs of the food processing and packaging industry.

For additional information, phone us in Alperton and we shall help you with compliance and to choose from the vast line of material grades some of which are self-lubricating or offer better wearing reducing equipment maintenance costs and improved productivity.