California seeks to ban Bisphenols and Ortho-phthalates in food packaging
California’s Assembly passed bill AB-1148, seeking to restrict the use of bisphenols and ortho-phthalates in all packaging. Known as Safer Food Packing Act of 2025, the bill authorises the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) to set restrictive limits but exempts tetramethyl bisphenol F (TMBPF, CAS 5384-21-4) unless DTSC deems the substance to also pose a significant risk to human health.
Bisphenols are a class of chemicals, which California defines as those having “two phenol rings connected by a single linker atom”. The most well known chemical in the class is Bisphenol A (BPA), which research has shown to be an endocrine disruptor. Exposure to BPA could cause possible health effects on the brain and prostate gland of fetuses, infants and children. It can also affect children's behavior.
Existing law currently prohibits the manufacture, sale, or distribution in commerce of any bottle or cup that contains bisphenol A for children under three years of age. Last year, governor Newsom signed a law that extended the age limit to 12 and to also include restrictions for juvenile feeding products or juvenile sucking or teething products. That law will go into effect on 1 January 2026.
The current bill’s scope is more expansive as it covers the entire bisphenol as well as the ortho-phthalates chemical class. It would also impact a wide range of packaging materials and products, including food or beverage containers, take-out food containers, unit product boxes, liners, wrappers, serving vessels, eating utensils, straws, food boxes, and disposable plates, bowls, or trays.
The restrictions on BPA in children’s products in the US and other parts of the world led companies to switch to other bisphenols such as Bispheno F (BPF, 620-92-8), Bisphenol S (BPS, 80-09-1) and TMBPF. However, studies have also shown adverse health effects associated with these chemicals, which explains the bill’s author's intention on wanting to regulate the chemical as a class and not as individual chemicals.
Ortho-phthalates, the other restrictive class, are a class of chemicals that are esters of ortho-phthalic acid. These chemicals are used to manufacture polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and other plastics. Research has found that phthalates have “negative long-term impacts on the success of pregnancy, child growth and development, and reproductive systems in both young children and adolescents.” Last year, California banned several ortho-phthalates in medical devices and starting on 1 January 2030, no medical devices may contain these substances.
If the bill is passed and signed into law, companies - starting on 1 January 2027 - must comply with the new requirements or face a civil penalty of 5000 USD for the first violation and a 10 000 USD penalty for each subsequent violation.
Business implications
Manufacturers and producers of food and beverage containers must ensure that their products do not contain any intentionally added bisphenol or ortho-phthalates, including where “the chemicals [are] components of intentionally added chemicals or [are] the intentional breakdown of an added chemical that have a functional effect in the product.” Brand owners and retailers of beverage and food packaging or food or beverage products that contain packaging but do not manufacture the packaging themselves must obtain information from the suppliers on the presence of these chemicals or conduct testing to ensure compliance.
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