Potential risks associated with neoformed compounds

The composition of materials in contact with foodstuffs is now well regulated. However, most of the health scares that have occurred in recent years concerning food packaging are linked to the presence in foodstuffs of unauthorized substances (so-called "neoformed" compounds), which are reaction or degradation products of constituents used in the manufacture of materials (technological adjuvants, adhesives, etc.), printing inks and varnishes.

Neoformed compounds, which have been in the news for packaging professionals for some years now, remain difficult to control (technically) and to regulate (legally). In Europe, the notion of neo-formed compounds does not appear explicitly in the various regulatory texts.