May 2008 - The Blog

Canned Food Has More BPA Than Plastic Bottles

May 29, 2008 Leave a Comment

bpa recycle numbers

This isn’t new. When I was freaking out about BPA in baby bottles and drink bottles, all the info I was reading listed BPA as a common ingredient in the lining of canned food.

CTV and the Globe and Mail did tests on canned goods and discovered that not only is the BPA there, it’s in higher concentrations than was found in plastics.

While baby bottles leach about 6 parts per billion of bisphenol A (BPA), the exclusive tests of food cans show:

* A can of children’s ravioli leached 6 parts per billion.
* A can of peas and carrots leached 7 parts per billion.
* A can of tomato juice leached 14 parts per billion.

Studies have shown when cans are heated in the manufacturing process, BPA leaches out of the linings. Foods are first sealed in cans and heated to kill bacteria in the food. Cans are heated to temperatures between 116 C and 121 C, and the length of time varies according to the type of food.

Because these findings show that BPA leached out of the cans and into water, it can be assumed that the chemical is leaching into the food itself when the cans are heated during the pasteurization process.
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I quickly removed ALL plastic with a bad plastics number from my house, what will I do about the cans?

London Drugs removed all the BPA plastic products from their shelves, will they be so quick with the cans?

The Federal Government is taking steps to have BPA declared a dangerous substance. There are alternatives to make plastics without it, what about cans?

Can we can tomatoes, corn, peas and beans WITHOUT BPA?

Yes. Eden Foods made the switch almost a decade ago – but it’s costly.

Eden Foods are available locally at Whole Foods, Nesters, BuyLow and other more organically inclined grocers, check the store locator on their site for a full list.

I prefer frozen vegetables to canned, as there isnt as much sodium in a bag of corn kernels, vs a can. But I buy canned tomatoes and beans to make sauces. What about canned tuna?

Oh, don’t worry about canned beer (for now) – the temperatures aren’t high enough during the canning process to leach out the BPA – but it’s there.

The Blog According to Buzz. Spread the word, ya heard?

The Ultimate BPA Safety Checklist

May 12, 2008 Leave a Comment

what is bpa

I think we’ve established the existence of BPA in baby bottles is a bad thing. Retailers have quickly scrambled to remove them from shelves after the Canadian Government took steps to label BPA a dangerous substance.

So we’ve taken steps to save our kids. Now it’s time to have a look through the rest of our cupboards and see what’s doing damage to us.

After reading all the blog posts on the topic, a colleague emailed me this great BPA Plastic Safety Checklist.

It has everything broken down by manufacturer, product, and recycle number. It explains everything simply, and if you find anything on the list in red in your cupboards, you’ve got to get rid of it.

Actually, my colleague is done with plastic, and the microwave altogether. I might be heading that direction too.

The Blog According to Buzz. Spread the word, ya heard?

London Drugs Continues Crusade Against BPA

May 8, 2008 Leave a Comment

Another day another press release setting the record straight about BPA.

This one comes from London Drugs, long our saviour for returning the BPA bottles. LD has curtailed their amnesty, where you didn’t need a receipt to return your old bottles, but is still accepting returns with receipts.

Here’s what they’re doing for the next stage of the battle:

Customers will find BPA-free products in London Drugs’ Baby section, BPA-free Reusable Water bottles, and BPA-free food storage containers

Richmond, BC – (May 8, 2008) – With the health and safety of our customers being of utmost importance, London Drugs immediately removed baby bottles, sippy cups and select food containers and water bottles containing BPA from store shelves in April and provided customers refunds for 50,000 products – mostly baby bottles – containing BPA.

London Drugs now offers only BPA-free baby bottles, toddler sippy cups and child drinking cups from reputable manufacturers such as Born-Free, Chicco, Nuby, Medela, Nurture Pure and Thermos. London Drugs Pharmacy is also offering BPA-free collection kits with Ameda breast pump rentals.

Further to the BPA-free baby products available, London Drugs also offers a wide variety of Canadian Thermos and Bilt Fresco stainless steel products including bottles, mugs, food jars and carafes.

Rubbermaid, Sterilite and Starfrit Lock & Lock BPA-free food storage containers and reusable water bottles are also available at London Drugs.

Nalgene reusable water bottles containing BPA have been removed from London Drugs store shelves and we have quantities, although limited at present, of BPA- free Nalgene water bottles. We are working with Nalgene to increase these quantities as soon as more BPA-free Nalgene product becomes available.

In response to customer requests and concern for the environment, London Drugs has been accepting old BPA baby bottles and sippy cups for recycling or for return to the manufacturer, and we will continue to provide refunds for BPA baby bottles purchased from London Drugs returned with a valid receipt. London Drugs will no longer refund BPA baby bottles without a valid London Drugs receipt.

London Drugs was happy to provide immediate assistance to both consumers and suppliers during this transition period stemming from Health Canada’s concerns regarding baby bottles containing BPA.

We are pleased to report that our baby bottle suppliers are also now prepared to directly address consumers who are seeking an alternative to polycarbonate bottles containing BPA. Consumers are invited to speak directly with a knowledgeable care representative who can provide assistance.

For baby bottles supplied by Philips AVENT: call 1-866-624-1906
For baby bottles supplied by Playtex: call 1-800-387-1300 or visit their site

For frequently asked questions about BPA in food storage and beverage products, please visit Rubbermaid.

Customers can also call a London Drugs customer service specialist for more information at 1-888-991-2299.

I still have the problem with Avent being listed in the press release. They’re a part of the pro-BPA lobby and if you call up the number you mighthave to filter out some misinformation and hammer them for some hard truths.

The Blog According to Buzz. Spread the word, ya heard?

BPA Baby Bottle Update

May 4, 2008 Leave a Comment

baby bottle nipple

Wow. This site has seen a HUGE run of traffic since I started writing about BPA. Many people are going back to my original thread introducing the issues, the return your bottles to London Drugs info and other pages making comments.

Since you may have seen the original threads, but not the updated info in the comments, I’m tossing up this update with the latest info:

London Drugs will be requiring a receipt after May 5, 2008 for any BPA infant bottle returns so get them in before then. I just saw a sign in their store today and confirmed that with their customer service line 1-888-991-2299.

LD has a max return limit of 6 Avent bottles at a time but not every clerk seems to enforce that. From speaking with a clerk, eventually Avent will will not be accepting any more bottles back so this program will be phased out. But LD should give some notice 1-2 weeks before that happens. Keep up the good work!
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Playtex Advance are no good. Check their website, they are offering free samples of their drop-ins plus have a chart of all their products and whether they are BPA free or not. . TJ Kids and Toys R Us both have Evenflo glass bottles for $3.79 (very reasonable compared to other options).

Talked to Canadian Springs this morning. They are claiming that their bottles are safe for several reasons…1. They are not boiled clean, they first clean with mild cleanser and lukewarm water, then they are disinfected with Ozone. 2. At any sign of wear, they are recycled and not used again. I gotta admit I’m not 100% convinced with their answer though.

Tupperware has this on their website. Rock n serve/heat and serve are “7″s…They are saying though that the amount of BPA in the plastic is minimal, thus they have no plans at the moment to recall or change anything. (this is what I hear from my consultant).
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I just came back from groceries at Save-On-Foods and their baby aisle was once full of Avent BPA badness, but it has been cleaned out. Good for them.

Even Avent is starting to buckle under the pressure and is offering customers samples of BPA-free products.

If you call 1-800-843-2174 and speak to a consumer care representative they will send you out free samples of their BPA-free bottles and sippy cups. [source]

That said, they’re still a part of the pro-BPA lobby. Which makes you wonder .. If BPA isn’t bad, why are they taking full page ads out in Ottawa newspapers offering free samples of a product that is BPA free and promoted as such?

Since Canada made the first announcements about BPA being harmful, the American govt has made moves to align themselves with Canada’s stance.

Emboldened by Canada’s decision to ban plastic baby bottles containing bisphenol A, Democrats in the U.S. Senate are proposing a law that prohibits the controversial chemical from all plastic products made for children who are up to the age of seven.
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Europe is following Canada’s lead and having deeper concerns about BPA.

So why is it then that Starbucks and Tim Hortons are still selling travel mugs that contain BPA?

I have no clue.

The main source of exposure for babies is through migration of BPA from boiling water poured into polycarbonate bottles. Clement said the use of BPA in linings of tin cans for infant formula remains a concern, but he opted against a wider ban in favour of establishing migration targets for industry.
Last month, a draft brief on BPA, released by the National Institutes of Health’s National Toxicology Program (NTP), singled out exposure to infants and children as a concern.

“There is some concern for neural and behavioural effects in fetuses, infants and children at current human exposures. The NTP also has some concern for bisphenol A exposure in these populations, based on effects in the prostate gland, mammary gland and an earlier age for puberty in females,” the federal agency concluded.
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The Blog According to Buzz. Spread the word, ya heard?