California Efforts to Ban Bisphenol A

Posted on Feb 3, 2009

Last year, CHANGE members, Breast Cancer Fund, Commonweal, and Environmental Working Group sponsored SB 1713, authored by Senator Carole Migden of San Francisco, to ban bisphenol A (BPA) in baby bottles, sippy cups, infant formula cans and baby food jars.

BPA, which is used to harden epoxy resin and polycarbonate plastics, has been recognized as a synthetic estrogen since the 1930s. In laboratory tests, trace BPA exposure been shown to disrupt the endocrine system and trigger a wide variety of disorders, including chromosomal and reproductive system abnormalities, impaired brain and neurological functions, cancer, cardiovascular system damage, adult-onset diabetes, early puberty and obesity.

Today, an estimated 6 billion pounds of BPA are produced globally annually, generating about $6 billion in sales. With such a lucrative market on the line, it wasn't exactly a surprise that our bill attracted opposition. What was troubling, however, was the brazen and well-financed onslaught by the chemical industry. Opponents of the bill sent flyers to more than a dozen districts, sponsored Internet ads and  unleashed a robo-calling system to pepper state residents with the message that Sacramento politicians were going to "remove products from your grocery bag" and "threaten the safety of our food."

Of course, the bill did nothing of the kind.  A San Francisco Chronicle editorial called the industry campaign "shamefully deceptive" and "one of the more misleading lobbying efforts we have seen in a long time." 

The BPA ban passed the California Senate and made it through all of the policy committees in the Assembly, only to die on the Assembly floor a few days before the session ended in late August.

In 2009, a dozen states around the nation are on the verge of introducing similar bills. Our children's health is at stake. Let us hope that science carries the day this time.