There are serious health concerns with keeping or serving food and drinks in any plastic container. This is because PFAS and BPF “Forever chemicals” leach out of the plastic, especially with warm food and during the washing up process.
Stainless uses much lower energy to clean than plastics because it can be air dried or hand towelled instead of using an industrial hot air drier..as with plastic beer cups, which easily grow mould in storage if stacked damp.
Occasionally, on some remote sites with very limited access for water but good nearby composting facilities, compostable, single-use items MAY be the most suitable option. Our suggested benchmark is, “does my event use flush toilets, showers and spa facilities? If so, we could prioritise washing dishes efficiently first”.
We will provide the data necessary for event organisers to make an informed choice, helping our industry calculate the real life cycle analysis of our choices by using sustainability experts and industry specific measurements. Our results will be an invaluable resource for the whole industry to draw upon.
The materials that supply all of our products will be sourced from the most ethical sources in the supply chain.
PAPER disposables are as unhealthy as PLASTIC
32 out of 42 tested items had been deliberately treated with PFAS chemicals
“Chemicals are widely used throughout the production of paper-based packaging. Out of the 608
substances of concern found in food packaging, 256 (42%) are used in paper and board packaging.
These are chemicals known to, among others, be persistent, cause cancer and disturb the human reproductive and hormonal system. Importantly, many toxic chemicals may migrate from food packaging and thus become a significant source of contamination in food and eventually the consumer’s body.
Analysis of paper-based take-away packaging and tableware in Europe showed that 32 out of 42 tested items had been deliberately treated with PFAS chemicals – including many labelled as biodegradable or compostable.
European legislation addressing chemical safety for food contact materials needs a thorough revision and lacks specific rules and requirements for paper packaging.”
SOURCE Rethink Plastic alliance, the European Environmental Bureau, Zero Waste Europe, Fern, and the Environmental Paper Network
There is currently no requirement to label packaging or products containing PFAS. Consumers therefore have no means to know whether PFAS are present in the products they buy.
Forever-Chemicals-in-the-Food-Aisle-Fidra-2020
This last fact is illustrated by the difficulty in finding any products which DO NOT contain binding or water repellent compounds that are considered non-toxic. The problem is that so many substances are allowed (30-40`000) and that very few combinations of them have been fully tested for toxicity. The law around disposable packaging is inadequate.
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