Migration of di-(2-ethylhexylexyl)Adipate Plasticizer from Food-Grade Polyvinyl Chloride Film into Hard and Soft Cheeses A. E. Goulas, K. I. Anifantaki, D. G. Kolioulis, and M. G. Kontominas Laboratory of Food Chemistry and Technology, Department of Chemistry, University of Ioannina, GR-45110 Ioannina, Greece ABSTRACT Food-grade polyvinyl chloride (PVC) film containing 28.3% di-(2-ethylhexylexyl)adipate (DEHA) plasti- cizer was used to wrap three different types of cheese (Kefalotyri, Edam, and Feta). Samples were split into two groups and stored at 5 ± 0.5°C. One group was analyzed for DEHA content at intervals between 1 and 240 h of contact (kinetic study), and a second group was cut into slices (1.2 mm thick) after 240 h of cheese/ PVC contact and was analyzed for DEHA content (pen- etration study). The DEHA was determined by indi- rect gas chromatography. Statistically significant dif- ferences in migration of DEHA were observed between the cheese types. Migration of DEHA depended on contact time, fat, and moisture contents, and consis- tency of cheese samples. Equilibrium conditions were approached after approximately 100 h of contact for Edam and 150 h for Kefalotyri cheese. Equilibrium conditions were not reached for Feta cheese, even after 240 h of contact. After 240 h of contact under refrigera- tion, the migration of DEHA was approximately 345.4 mg/kg (18.9 mg/dm 2 ) for Kefalotyri, 222.5 mg/kg (12.2 mg/dm 2 ) for Edam, and 133.9 mg/kg (7.3 mg/dm 2 ) for Feta. The loss of DEHA from the PVC film into the three cheese types was 37.8, 24.3, and 14.6%, respec- tively. These values, with the exception of Feta, were higher than the upper limit for global migration from plastic packaging materials into food and food stimu- lants set by the European Union (EU) (10 mg/dm 2 or 60 mg/kg). After 240 h of cheese/film contact, DEHA was detected in the first three slices beneath the cheese surface (3.6 mm total depth) of Edam cheese and in the first two slices (2.4 mm total depth) of Kefa- lotryi and Feta cheeses. DEHA was not detected in subsequent layers. The effect of cheese rind on migra- tion of DEHA was studied in Edam and Kefalotyri cheeses. The DEHA migration after 240 h into the first Received August 20, 1999. Accepted February 22, 2000. Corresponding author: M. G. Kontominas. E-mail: mkontomi@ cc.io.gr. 2000 J Dairy Sci 83:1712–1718 1712 1 mm beneath the surface of Kefalotyri cheese was 22.4 mg/kg, while DEHA was not detected in Edam cheese. (Key words: di-(2-ethylhexylexyl)adipate plasticizer, migration, polyvinyl chloride film, cheese) Abbreviation key: DEHA = di-(2-ethylhexylexyl)ad- ipate, EU = European Union, PVC = polyvinyl chloride. INTRODUCTION Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is one of the most versatile plastics because of its blending ability with a variety of additives such as plasticizers and stabilizers to pro- duce a wide range of products including packaging materials (26). Packaging represents 7 to 8% of total annual North American sales of PVC of 11.0 billion lbs in 1994 (3). In 1992, 5 million tonnes of PVC were used in the European Union (EU); this packaging ma- terial was second only to polyethylene in terms of con- sumption (2). About 28% of PVC in packaging involves food applications, 31% medical uses, and 41% nonfood uses. Film and sheet followed by bottle production are the largest applications for PVC in food packaging, accounting for 547 and 188 million lbs annually (3). Polyvinyl chloride film is widely used as a food wrap because it is flexible and transparent and has a rela- tively high permeability to oxygen and water (10, 25). Typically, such films have a thickness between 10 and 15 µm (3, 25). The thin PVC films known as “cling- films” are widely used for wrapping red meat, poultry, fruit, vegetables, and cheese at the retail level (25, 26). Most of these PVC films are plasticized with high levels of di-(2-ethylhexyl)adipate (DEHA) (25, 30, 34). There are about 100 plasticizers of commercial im- portance. Of the plasticizers produced the phthalic acid esters are the major class (12). The most widely used plasticizer for food contact applications in PVC is DEHA, often used in concentrations exceeding 20% by weight of the polymer. Epoxidized soya bean oil and acetyl tributyl citrate are also used in PVC and vinylidene chloride copolymer films (17, 19, 25, 30). Plasticizers are mainly organic esters of high boiling
Migration of di-(2-ethylhexylexyl)Adipate Plasticizer from Food-Grade Polyvinyl Chloride Film into Hard and Soft Cheeses
Jun 24, 2023
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