Japan formulates food contact PEN materials and articles

On 8 June 2016, the Japan Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) published Notification No. 245 of 2016 to regulate the use of food contact polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) materials and articles, or food contact materials and articles manufactured with PEN as the principle ingredient. The new law mandates requirements for evaporation residues and migration for germanium. The new legislation will take into force on 8 December 2016 which is six months since its publication.

PEN (Poly(ethylene 2,6-naphthalate) is a polyester with good barrier properties (even better than Polyethylene terephthalate). Because it provides a very good oxygen barrier, it is particularly well-suited for bottling beverages that are susceptible to oxidation, such as beer. It is also used in making high performance sailcloth.

It is important to note that food contact PEN materials and articles are also obliged to comply with the existing specifications for general plastics as follows:

Food contact material	Index	Requirement	Effective date
Polyethylene Naphthalene (PEN)	Evaporation residue	≤ 30 μg/ml	8 December 2016
	Specific migration of germanium	≤ 0.1 μg/ml
	Cadmium content	≤ 100 μg/ml	In force
	Consumption of potassium permanganate	≤ 10 μg/ml
	Lead content	≤ 100 μg/ml
	Migration of heavy metals (as lead)	≤ 1 μg/ml

C&K Testing advises businesses who export food contact PEN materials and articles to the Japan should learn about the above requirements to avoid non-compliance.

【中文版】

Further information
Japan intends to formulate PEN food contact products specifications and standards—C&K Testing in Feb.