Professor Esther Sakyi-Dawson, Associate Professor of Food Science, University of Ghana, has called for an outright ban on non-food-grade plastic wraps used to package hot and oily meals, citing serious health risks to consumers.
Speaking at the World Food Safety Day event in Accra, she revealed that over 60 percent of street food vendors in Ghana use plastics not designed for food contact, which leach harmful chemicals such as Bisphenol A (BPA) and phthalates into meals, particularly when exposed to heat and oil.
During the manufacturing of plastics, some inorganic and organic compounds are added as additives to enhance certain characteristics of the plastics. "Because these are not covalently bonded to the polymer, they can migrate from the packaging material into the food or drink," she explained.
Prof.
