Heavy Metal Index
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Assorted plastic food containers and packaging items illustrating eti2023 Bangladesh plastic food contact material metals migration research context.

Assessment of heavy metals migrated from food contact plastic packaging: Bangladesh perspective

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Overview

Eti and colleagues measured migration of lead, cadmium, mercury, chromium, and antimony from 25 plastic food contact material (FCM) samples into three food simulants (distilled water, 3% acetic acid, 15% ethanol) at 70 degrees Celsius for two hours. The sample set includes child-relevant items: PC-3 (baby water jar), PC-5 (baby food jar), PET-5 (baby food jar), and PP-5 (baby packet) alongside general food packaging. All 25 samples migrated all five measured metals above WHO drinking water guideline values. The study represents direct product evidence for plastic food contact containers used for infant and child foods in a developing-country market.

Key numbers

Overall migration into distilled water (Table 4, mg/kg, mean +/- SD), selected child-relevant items:

  • PC-3 (baby water jar): distilled water 0.40 +/- 0.17, 3% acetic acid 0.43 +/- 0.19, 15% ethanol 0.53 +/- 0.12 mg/kg
  • PC-5 (baby food jar): distilled water 2.33 +/- 0.06, 3% acetic acid 1.83 +/- 0.06, 15% ethanol 3.10 +/- 0.10 mg/kg
  • PET-5 (baby food jar): distilled water 0.97 +/- 0.21, 3% acetic acid 1.23 +/- 0.06, 15% ethanol 1.33 +/- 0.12 mg/kg
  • PP-5 (baby packet): distilled water 0.27 +/- 0.06, 3% acetic acid 0.50 +/- 0.10, 15% ethanol 0.50 +/- 0.10 mg/kg
  • Highest overall migration across all 25 samples: PP-4 (coffee cup transparent, yogurt container) at 3.50 +/- 0.17 mg/kg in distilled water; PP-3 at 9.17 +/- 0.15 mg/kg in 3% acetic acid (p. 5, Table 4)

Specific heavy metal migration into water simulant (p. 7, Fig. 3; bars read by metal, approximate):

  • Lead (Pb): range approximately 0.09 to 0.45 mg/kg across all samples; highest PP-2 at 0.45 +/- 0.01 mg/kg; paper states all samples exceeded WHO drinking water limit of 0.01 mg/L (p. 7)
  • Cadmium (Cd): highest PP-2 at approximately 0.36 +/- 0.01 mg/kg and PP-5 at 0.28 +/- 0.08 mg/kg from water simulant; all samples exceeded WHO recommended level of 0.003 mg/L (p. 7)
  • Mercury (Hg): highest PC-5 (baby food jar) at approximately 0.27 mg/kg from water simulant; range approximately 0.07 to 0.27 mg/kg across samples (p. 7, Fig. 3c)
  • Chromium (Cr): highest PET-2 at 0.12 +/- 0.01 mg/kg from water simulant; paper states all samples exceeded WHO permissible limit of 0.05 mg/L (p. 7)
  • Antimony (Sb): highest PET-1 at approximately 0.09 mg/kg from water simulant; range approximately 0.05 to 0.09 mg/kg; paper states all samples exceeded EU Regulation No. October 2011 limit of less than 0.04 mg/kg (p. 7)

Regulatory benchmarks used by authors (Table 3): EU No. October 2011 overall migration limit 60 mg/kg; Pb 2.0 mg/kg; Sb less than 0.04 mg/kg; WHO drinking water Pb 0.01 mg/L, Cd 0.003 mg/L, Hg 0.006 mg/L, Cr 0.05 mg/L, Sb 0.02 mg/L.

Methods (brief)

Polymer type was confirmed by ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. Samples were immersed in three food simulants (distilled water, 3% v/v acetic acid, 15% v/v ethanol) at 70 degrees Celsius for two hours. Overall migration was measured gravimetrically (weight loss per 6 dm2 surface area). Heavy metal concentrations in simulants were measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometry (Analytikjena novAA, Germany) using acetylene gas for all five metals. Each sample was run in triplicate; one-way ANOVA performed in Minitab 17 (p less than 0.05). LOD/LOQ and CRM details are not reported. Chromium was measured as total chromium; arsenic and mercury speciation are not reported; speciation of Sb is not reported.

Implications

Certification: This source provides direct migration evidence for plastic food contact containers including child-designated items (baby food jars, baby water jars). Migration values exceed multiple regulatory thresholds. The Bangladesh market context limits generalizability to certified-brand supply chains, but the findings are directional for any plastic FCM category.

Courses: Useful for illustrating how polymer type (PP versus PET versus PC) and food simulant acidity interact to determine metal migration risk. The divergence between distilled water and 3% acetic acid for the yogurt container sample (0.57 to 9.17 mg/kg) demonstrates the pH-migration relationship concretely.

App: Supports product-context notes that plastic food containers, including child-designated items, can migrate Pb, Cd, Hg, Cr, and Sb into food, with migration driven by acidity, temperature, and contact time.

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