FDA Bans BPA in Baby Bottles as Companies Abandon Use

Baby bottles and other cups intended for children can no longer contain the chemical bisphenol A, or BPA, under new rules by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The change was made primarily because the use by companies of polycarbonate containing BPA has already been “completely and permanently abandoned” in baby drinking products, the FDA said in the Federal Register today. The American Chemistry Council, a Washington-based trade group, had petitioned the agency for the change in October.

“FDA action on this request now provides certainty that BPA is not used to make the baby bottles and sippy cups on store shelves, either today or in the future,” Steven Hentges, a spokesman for the council said in a statement.

BPA is used to harden plastic and make canned food watertight and for decades was included in the manufacture of plastic food containers and baby bottles. Companies stopped using it in baby bottles and sippy cups several years ago, according to the chemistry council statement.

BPA has been linked to male infertility, diabetes and cancer. A study in October said exposure in the womb may cause behavior and emotional problems in young girls.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ryan Flinn in San Francisco at rflinn@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Reg Gale at rgale5@bloomberg.net