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Eastman 168 non-phthalate plasticizer, supplied by Eastman Chemical (Kingsport, TN), already had Food Contact Notification (FCN) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and now also is listed in EU Commission regulation (EC) No 975/2009 amending Annex III (the list of additives which may be used in the manufacture of plastic materials and articles) of Directive 2002/72/EC relating to plastic materials and articles intended to come into contact with foodstuffs.

MPW Staff

March 31, 2010

1 Min Read
Non-phthalate plasticizer cleared for greater use

(Kingsport, TN), already had Food Contact Notification (FCN) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and now also is listed in EU Commission regulation (EC) No 975/2009 amending Annex III (the list of additives which may be used in the manufacture of plastic materials and articles) of Directive 2002/72/EC relating to plastic materials and articles intended to come into contact with foodstuffs. Plasticizers are used to improve flexibility in what typically are rigid plastics, such as polyvinyl chloride.  

As of Jan. 1, 2010 the list of additives in Directive 2002/72/EC relating to plastic materials and articles intended to come into contact with foodstuffs has become a positive list to the exclusion of all others.

Eastman says the plasticizer has been demonstrated to be a ready, drop-in replacement for some of the most widely used ortho-phthalate products (a.k.a. phthalates) that are currently experiencing regulatory pressure due to concerns about their possible effects on health. Eastman has completed a debottlenecking project to allow increased production of the non-phthalate plasticizer in response to what it says is rapidly growing global customer demand, particularly in toys, childcare articles, medical devices, and other applications. The supplier also recently has more than doubled its bulk storage capacity in the European Union (EU) to ensure quick delivery to its European customers. —[email protected]

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