All over the world, food standards agencies (such as the FSA in the UK) legislate that the plastics used in the production of food packaging must be much purer than those used in non-food packaging products. These compounds are collectively termed ‘food grade plastic’ and only those plastics used in pharmaceutical packaging have to meet more stringent standards.
So what constitutes food-grade plastic? One of the key criteria is that it must not contain any industrial dyes or recycled plastic that could be harmful to humans. However, this doesn’t preclude food-grade plastic from containing any recycled plastic at all and, because of this, there are detailed regulations concerning its use in food packaging. Since the majority of plastics, these days tend to be recycled in one way or another, the compound can be derived from a variety of sources, old wheely bins, dangerous chemical containers, etc and so this must be monitored carefully.
If any of the food that might be packaged in these plastic buckets contains high proportions of acid, alcohol, or certain fats, it’s very possible they could leach the plastic additives from the container back into the food. Consequently, there are guidelines regarding which plastic containers are approved for the specific kind of food they will be holding.
Food-grade plastic for food preparation
As well as the containment and transportation of food, there are other applications regarding when and where to use food-grade plastic. The preparation of foodstuffs needs also to be carried out in these kinds of containers. One particular cottage industry or hobby that relies on the use of plastic buckets is homebrew. Unfortunately, many may not know they can’t use any old buckets. The temperature that the beer reaches, combined with its alcohol content, can mean that the safety of the beer can be compromised should food-grade plastic buckets not be used.
One final point, often overlooked, is that a plastic container will cease to be food grade if any other type of items, such as chemicals or detergent, have since been stored in it. A food-grade plastic bucket that’s contained paint, or other similarly toxic contents, must only ever be used to hold non-food substances from that point on.