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	The SwRI food chemistry laboratory tests food product packaging.
	Sampling a plastic pallet.
	Sampling a wooden pallet.

The food chemistry labs at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) investigate packaging and shipping conditions and their effects on food products during transport. Plastics are typically manufactured with flame-retardant additives. One new type of high-density polyethylene plastic shipping pallet is manufactured using the additive Deca, a type of brominated flame retardant. The SwRI chemists performed experiments to investigate whether a specific Deca component, brominated diphenyl ether (BDE) congeners, can migrate from the plastic pallet onto the shrink-wrap of the packages loaded onto it. Results demonstrated that BDE congeners could leach from the plastic pallet to the shrink-wrap beneath the product packages.

Custom Testing and Analysis

The food chemistry laboratories at SwRI are staying abreast of other food safety issues as they arise. Recent concerns involve the presence of bisphenol A in plastic bottles, phthalates in plastic food storage and packaging, banned colors in imported products, undeclared allergens in products and counterfeit products. The SwRI team remains dedicated to providing accurate and timely analyses tailored to fit clients' specific needs.

Although there is much concern over the presence of chemical contaminants in a variety of foods, it must be noted that recent advances in technology allow analytical chemists to detect these compounds at ultra-low levels, typically at the parts-per-trillion level. However, at what levels these compounds cause harm to the human body is not always known. Therefore, the responsibility of setting limits for these compounds in food falls to the government agencies that oversee the food industry.
 

References

Sundlof, Stephen F. "Foodborne illness outbreak associated with salmonella." hhs.gov. 11 Feb. 2009. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 29 June 2009. http://www.hhs.gov/asl/testify/2009/02/t20090211b.html.

Stadler, Richard H., Imre Blank, Natalia Vargas, Fabien Robert, Jorg Hau, Phillippe A. Guy, Marie-Claude Robert, and Sonja Riediker. "Food chemistry: Acrylamide from Maillard reaction products." Nature 419 (2002): 449-450. Nature. 3 Oct. 2002. 13 Jan. 2009. http://www:nature.com/nature/journal/v419/n6906/full/419449a.html.

Raloff, Janet. "Pesticide may seed American infant formulas with melamine." ScienceNews 3 June 2009. Society for Science and the Public. 29 June 2009 http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/44307.

For more information about detecting acrylamide, chemical contaminants, and residues in food, or how you can contract with SwRI, please contact Lorraine Scheller at lscheller@swri.org or (210) 522-2182.

foodtest.swri.org
 

| Analytical & Environmental Chemistry Department | Chemistry & Chemical Engineering Division | SwRI Home |

Southwest Research Institute^® (SwRI^®), headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, is a multidisciplinary, independent, nonprofit, applied engineering and physical sciences research and development organization with 11 technical divisions.

December 28, 2012