IKEA recalls 17W pieces of tableware in question, which are all biodegradable plastics?

 

This time IKEA recalled HEROISK Heathrow and TALRIKA series tableware. 173,564 pieces of tableware have been sold in China, and the tableware recalled are all made of #PLA polylactic acid, which is currently the largest and most widely produced one. New type of biodegradable plastic.

IKEA said that the reason for the recall was the discovery that dishwashers and microwave ovens would affect the durability of the series of tableware, causing cracks, leakage and burns.

Many friends are beginning to worry; does that mean that biodegradable plastics are unreliable?

In fact, PLA material is a new type of environmentally friendly tableware. It usually uses crops such as corn and cassava and plant rhizomes as raw materials, which is relatively safe and environmentally friendly.

In this IKEA recall, PLA material has not had any safety issues before. As long as you pay attention to the use scene and don't use it in the dishwasher or microwave oven, it is still a good substitute for plastic tableware.

This incident also shows that there is still much room for improvement in the application scenarios of degradable plastic products. Before biodegradable plastics were widely used in tableware and kitchenware, traditional plastic water cups, fresh-keeping boxes, and fresh-keeping film were still essential tableware and kitchenware in many households, although we do not advocate the use of disposable plastic products. In addition, the safety incidents related to plastic tableware have occurred frequently in the past few years, so it is better to talk about the safety of plastic tableware through the IKEA recall incident.

The safety of plastics is not a problem with the plastic itself, but a problem with the chemical additives added during the production process. These substances may be precipitated and absorbed by the human body under the action of plastic aging, high temperature, and acid-base oil.

The first chemical additives to be mentioned must be plasticizers, such as DEHA, DEHP, etc. They are most likely to appear in PVC products.

1. DEHP will endanger male reproductive ability and promote precocious puberty of females, which is very harmful to the endocrine reproductive system of young children.

2. DEHA has been included in the third category of carcinogens. Although it has been restricted, it still can't hide from black-hearted businesses and steal it with their conscience. I saw that 15 of 16 brands of plastic wrap in the random inspection news contained DEHA, a plasticizer banned by the country! The result of random inspection was 98 times higher than the detection line at the lowest and 472 times higher than the detection line at the highest, which was too scary.

3. DOA, the plasticizer component, also has health risks, because once DOA comes in contact with high temperatures exceeding 60° or in contact with oily foods, harmful substances are easily precipitated.

Another frequently named bisphenol A is mainly from PC water cups and baby bottles. Although in theory bisphenol A can be 100% converted into a plastic structure, it loses its own toxicity, but there are hidden dangers in reality, so my country and many countries in the world have banned the production of PC baby bottles.

But there are still black-hearted businesses in use, and the bisphenol A precipitated in high temperature can disrupt human metabolism and affect infant development and immunity.

TTS believes that plastic may be the greatest invention of mankind so far, but it is also the most terrifying invention.

If you can replace the plastic tableware in your home with other more environmentally friendly materials such as ceramics, glass or the biodegradable materials we have been talking about recently, it is of course the best choice.

But if you have to use it, it's the old saying: don't buy three-no products at a low price, and choose tableware produced by regular manufacturers on the market as much as possible when buying. Check if the product label indicates that the product complies with the national standard "GB 4806.7-2016 National Food Safety Standard Plastic Materials and Products for Food Contact", which can help you avoid most of the risks, especially the things used by children must be considered again and again. Good health is the most important thing.

I hope that those of you who read this article will like and repost more, so that more people can understand the security issues that may be overlooked around us.

TTS is your reliable quality inspection partner in China. We are always glad to provide our clients with the best quality control, pre-shipment, pre-production and other kinds of inspections and factory audit in China and in other Asian countries as well. We are your personal Quality Control Manager with more than 10 years’ experience.