In this article, the authors provide a concise outlook on the current Food Contact Material (FCM) regulations in several markets around the globe. In this respect, countries and regions such as United States of America (USA), European Union (EU), People’s Republic of China (hereafter: China), Japan, Mercosur (‘Mercado Común Del Sur’ or ‘Common Market of the South’), and Switzerland have been addressed. The focus is on recent developments in FCM regulations, and trends in relation to implementation of new regulations in other areas such as industrial chemicals, globally driven by the general trend on harmonization and circular economy requirements.
Ioan Paraschiv, Ph.D. is a regulatory affairs manager at knoell NL, B.V. in Wageningen, the Netherlands. He has many years of experience in providing technical support on various food contact applications covering key markets around the globe. He has been closely involved in preparation of numerous EU-REACH dossiers, as well as providing valuable regulatory support on industrial chemicals in one EU-REACH Consortia. For correspondence: <mailto:iparaschiv@knoell.com>. Raymond L. Sobocinski, Ph.D. is a regulatory product chemist at knoell USA, LLC in Garnet Valley, Pennsylvania, USA. He has many years of experience in preparation of different analytical / chemistry sections in food contact applications, as well as substance identification and regulatory support for EU-REACH dossiers. For correspondence: <mailto:rsobocinski@knoellusa.com>. The authors would like to express their appreciation to their colleagues, Katarzyna Bucior, Ph.D., and Michael Cleuvers, Ph.D. for their valuable input on this article.
