OEHHA Proposes Extension of Emergency Measure Governing BPA Disclosure

The California Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Environmental
Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) has proposed initiating a
regular rulemaking process to extend until December 30, 2017, an emergency
measure that allows retailers to use standard point-of-sale warning
messages for bisphenol A (BPA) exposures from canned and bottled
foods and beverages. Under Proposition 65 (Prop. 65) regulations,
consumer products that contain any chemical known to the state to cause
reproductive toxicity or cancer must display a “clear and reasonable”
warning on “labeling, shelf tags, shelf signs, menus or any combination
thereof as long as the warning is prominent and conspicuous.”

Taking into account comments received on the emergency measure,
OEHHA believes that the proposed regulation “will provide consistent,
informative, and meaningful warnings to consumers about significant
exposures to BPA.” These warnings will included a link to OEHHA’s
website, “which will contain fact sheets, links to informational materials
on BPA from other authoritative organizations, and a searchable list of
food and beverage products where BPA is intentionally used in the can
or lids.”

The agency will hold a public hearing on the proposed amendment
on September 12, 2016, and will accept written comments through
September 26, 2016. Additional details about the emergency measure
appear in Issue 598 of this Update.

Issue 612