Plastics are widely employed for packaging foods and concern has grown about the potential effects of toxic elements leached from the plastic films into the foods contained by the plastic packaging.
Plastics are difficult to analyze because of their inertness and resistance to dissolution.
The measurement problems and legal issues are international in scope as acceptable levels vary and acceptable methodologies are known to be deficient. This problem will be well served by the use of definitive isotope measurement technology to resolve differences in measurement in the industry and among regulatory agencies. The participants programme was completed in 1998 and a participants report was prepared by IRMM after the Geneva meeting, late in 1998. Additional publications for the open literature have been prepared and are submitted for publication. Page last modified 12 October 1999.