Reduce migration
Check and improve packaging food safety and organoleptic impacts
The control of the chemical risk associated with the migration of components from the packaging and migrating to food is the conjunction of the control of the danger and the exposure to this danger. Migration tests allow the control of exposure. Migration is controlled by contact tests with liquids leading to a higher migration than the food they simulate. The tests are carried out under conditions (time-temperature) representative of the future conditions of use of the packaging in contact with the product; in other words, to test the migration of fast food packaging, the tests are much less severe than for packaging intended to package products sterilized and stored for long periods of time
When the migration tests lead to unacceptable transfer levels, a safe design strategy can be initiated to design a more chemically inert packaging.
Overall migration is too high
Change the resin or its grade to reduce the oligomer content; Check if the conditions of material transformation lead to polymer degradation leading to oligomer formation; Check the initial formulation: can the additive content be reduced?
Specific migration is too high
The additive concerned by this specific migration: can it be replaced / by an additive with higher molecular weight? / by an additive with no specific migration limit? Can it be introduced at lower content in the formulation?
Migration (specific and overall) is too high
Is it possible to target an application with lower time-temperature contact conditions?
Improve the barrier level of the packaging: change the main polymer, increase its crystallinity, add a functional barrier to delay and reduce migration level.