California EPA’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) has added diisononyl phthalate—a plasticizer used in food contact materials—to the list of chemicals known to the state to cause cancer. OEHHA’s Carcinogen Identification Committee determined that “the chemical was clearly shown, through scientifically valid testing according to generally accepted principles, to cause cancer.” The addition, made under the “state’s qualified expert” mechanism of the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 (Prop. 65), takes effect December 20, 2013. OEHHA will next set a safe exposure level for the chemical. See OEHHA News Release, December 12, 2013; Bloomberg BNA Product Safety & Liability Reporter, December 13, 2013.

 

Issue 508

About The Author

For decades, manufacturers, distributors and retailers at every link in the food chain have come to Shook, Hardy & Bacon to partner with a legal team that understands the issues they face in today's evolving food production industry. Shook attorneys work with some of the world's largest food, beverage and agribusiness companies to establish preventative measures, conduct internal audits, develop public relations strategies, and advance tort reform initiatives.

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