At present, there are many misunderstandings about the safety and hygiene of plastic packaging bags in society and on the Internet.

1. With “plastic restrictions” and “plastic bans” in place, why are we still using a lot of plastic packaging?

"Plastic restriction" refers to the country's restriction on the production and use of plastic shopping bags with a thickness of less than 0.025 mm. Plastic shopping bags refer to plastic bags with two handles, plastic bags without handles, such as bone bags, hook bags, flat bags, rolled bags, etc. There are no restrictions. "Plastic ban" is an administrative regulation in some provinces that bans all plastic bags or bans all plastic shopping bags.

"Plastic restriction" and "plastic ban" do not apply to all plastic packaging bags. So far, plastic is still a material that has a wide range of applications in daily life, has good performance, is convenient, cheap, energy-saving, and environmentally friendly. Plastic products will only be used more and more, and their scope of use will become wider and wider.

As for the reasons for “plastic restriction” and “plastic ban”, Document No. 72 of the General Office of the State Council (2007) stated very clearly and objectively: “While plastic shopping bags provide convenience to consumers, due to excessive use and insufficient recycling, In place and other reasons, it has also caused serious energy waste and environmental pollution. In particular, ultra-thin plastic shopping bags are easy to break, and most of them are discarded at will, becoming the main source of 'white pollution'." In fact, people are the main cause of white pollution. reason.

2. A large amount of plasticizer is added to plastic packaging, so use less plastic?

This is a serious misunderstanding. Among commonly used plastic packaging, only soft products of polyvinyl chloride need to add plasticizer (plasticizer), and the vast majority of plastic packaging does not contain plasticizer.

3. Are plasticizers toxic? Do plasticizers cause cancer?

These questions can be answered together: There are many types of plasticizers, which cannot be generalized. Some are toxic, some are non-toxic, some are carcinogenic, and some are not. Those that are toxic and carcinogenic have very different degrees of harm to humans.

From a toxicological point of view, whether a foreign compound can cause toxicity or carcinogenicity to humans generally requires at least three conditions to be met at the same time, and one of them is indispensable. First, it must have a sufficient dose. Insufficient dosage will not be established; second, it must be foreign. What form the compound is in and the physical and chemical properties of this form. Many substances are harmful in one form and harmless in another form. The third is the way in which foreign compounds come into contact with people, whether they are seen, in contact with the skin, inhaled, or Ingestion into the stomach, and absorption, etc.

Therefore, if someone says on some occasion that a certain foreign compound is toxic or carcinogenic, and he can also tell you about the above three conditions, then maybe what he said is related and possible, and we can go deeper and ask for advice. until approved. If the three conditions cannot be explained clearly, do not believe it or publicize it for the time being, and wait until it is clarified.

Because scientific toxicology is supported by toxicological experiments, not speculation. As for carcinogenicity, which is more complicated than toxicity assessment, it requires rigorously designed population epidemiological surveys to determine. Only long-term and lifelong tests on animals can be recognized as conclusive evidence. These investigations and tests are not easy to conduct, so mutagenicity tests can be conducted first to make preliminary speculations on their carcinogenicity. If mutagenicity tests are not even done, how can we say that a certain plastic under certain conditions is carcinogenic?

For all plastic products used as food packaging, containers, and tools, the raw materials and additives they use must be tested to meet the safety and health indicators of relevant national standards. Plastic products that are in close contact with food must be tested to comply with the regulations after they are produced in the factory. National or industry standard safety and health indicators, such as mineral water barrels, etc.; at the same time, the factory that produces them must rectify the factory's hardware facilities and software conditions according to the industry's production license details, product sampling inspection, and pass the review by the quality inspection department to obtain food Only with a production license can the QS mark be stamped on plastic products for food; in the future, these companies and products will also be subject to regular supervision and inspection by the quality inspection department. Plastic products with the QS mark from regular manufacturers can be used with confidence.

4. How can the harm of plasticizers to humans be reduced and further reduced?

1. Strengthen the research, development, promotion and use of new low-toxic and non-toxic plasticizers, and accelerate the process of replacing or eliminating toxic plasticizers.

2. For food plastic products that require the use of plasticizers, manufacturers must strictly control the quality of the entire production process and product quality. Unqualified products and products with potential safety hazards are not allowed to leave the factory. To this end, industry self-discipline must be strengthened, law enforcement supervision must be strengthened, and social and media supervision must be strengthened.

3. As a consumer, you must recognize the products with QS logo from regular manufacturers and do not try to get cheap prices.

4. Recognize the signs of plastic products for food and use them correctly. Different plastic products have different usage requirements. There are signs on the bottom of mineral water buckets, mineral water bottles and other products. There are often paper product instructions sandwiched in the plastic wrap. Use them according to the material requirements of this plastic product. It is safe to use randomly.