EU bans bisphenol-A chemical from babies' bottles

LONDON. November 26. KAZINFORM The European Commission has announced a ban on the use of Bisphenol-A (BPA) in plastic baby bottles; Kazinform refers to BBC News.
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The commission cited fears that the compound could affect development and immune response in young children.

The EU ban will come into effect during 2011.

There has been concern over the use of BPA for some time, with six US manufacturers removing it in 2009 from bottles they sold in the US, although not other markets.

The chemical is widely used in making hard, clear plastic and is commonly found in food and drink containers.

A European Commission spokesman said the proposal had been approved after being presented to a committee of national government experts on Thursday - months earlier than scheduled - and approved.

The European parliament had called for the ban in June.

John Dalli, Commissioner in charge of Health and Consumer Policy, said the ban was good news for European parents.

"There were areas of uncertainty, deriving from new studies, which showed that BPA might have an effect on development, immune response and tumour promotion," Mr Dalli said in a statement.

EU states will outlaw the manufacture of polycarbonate feeding bottles containing the compound from March 2011, and ban their import and sale from June 2011, the Commission said.

The National Childbirth Trust is a British charity which has campaigned for the ban; Kazinform cites BBC News.

See www.bbc.co.uk for full version.

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