Food contact materials
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Food Contact Materials (FCMs) are the materials and articles that come into contact with food during production, processing, storage, preparation, serving and consumption. They include a wide range of products, such as food packaging, containers, machinery used in food processing, kitchenware and tableware. FCMs may be intended for direct or indirect contact with food, or may reasonably be expected to transfer their constituents to food under normal or foreseeable conditions of use.
Because substances can migrate from these materials into food, FCMs are an important part of the EU’s food safety framework. Such transfers may affect consumer health, but also the quality, taste, smell and appearance of food. For this reason, FCMs must be sufficiently inert, so that their components do not adversely affect food or make it unsafe. |
At EU level, legislation on food contact materials aims to achieve two main objectives: protecting consumers’ health and ensuring the effective functioning of the internal market. The main legal basis is Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004, which sets the general rules for materials and articles intended to come into contact with food when placed on the EU market. In addition, all FCMs must be manufactured in accordance with Good Manufacturing Practice, laid down in Commission Regulation (EC) No 2023/2006. Specific EU rules also apply to certain materials, including plastics and ceramics, while national legislation may still apply in areas where no harmonised EU rules exist.
The safety of food contact materials is assessed at several levels. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) evaluates the safety of substances used in FCMs, while business operators are responsible for testing the safety of the products they place on the market. Member States’ competent authorities then verify compliance through official controls. Scientific and technical support for testing methods is also provided by the European Reference Laboratory for Food Contact Materials (EURL-FCM), which develops guidance and technical resources in this field.
Overall, the EU framework for food contact materials combines general legal principles, specific material rules, scientific risk assessment, operator responsibility and official enforcement in order to ensure that food remains safe throughout the supply chain and that FCMs can circulate freely within the internal market.
The safety of food contact materials is assessed at several levels. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) evaluates the safety of substances used in FCMs, while business operators are responsible for testing the safety of the products they place on the market. Member States’ competent authorities then verify compliance through official controls. Scientific and technical support for testing methods is also provided by the European Reference Laboratory for Food Contact Materials (EURL-FCM), which develops guidance and technical resources in this field.
Overall, the EU framework for food contact materials combines general legal principles, specific material rules, scientific risk assessment, operator responsibility and official enforcement in order to ensure that food remains safe throughout the supply chain and that FCMs can circulate freely within the internal market.
