Food Toxicology 2(2+0)

Lesson 28 : Food packaging material – potential contaminants from food packaging material

The use of plastic containers and films in cooking

As the tendency for plasticizers to migrate increases at higher temperatures, only those plastics specifically designed for oven use are suitable for cooking. While little confusion is likely to arise with the use of plastics in conventional ovens, their safe use in microwave ovens is more complex. Many plastic containers may appear to perform satisfactorily in the microwave oven, but their migration levels at high temperatures will not necessarily have been tested. This applies particularly to those food containers used to package chilled or frozen foods e.g. ice cream containers, which are not designed to be exposed to high temperatures.