Evaluation of measures to mitigate mineral oil migration from recycled paper in food packaging

The presence of mineral oil saturated hydrocarbons (MOSH) and aromatic hydrocarbons (MOAH) in food is a safety concern. Migration to food from recycled paper and board is a relevant source of MOSH and MOAH, and the potential of several technologies to reduce it was explored. These technologies were assessed for food safety (people), environment (planet) and economy (profit) in an integrated way, using a framework developed to compare the effect of the technologies with the current state of the art. Two mature technologies were evaluated (MB12 and flotation), two in development (supercritical CO2 and thermal treatment), and two as a concept (anionic trash catchers and functionalized clays). The use of mineral‐oil‐free inks for printing newspapers was also evaluated. It was concluded that, although it is desirable to apply mineral‐oil‐free inks, in the short‐term reduction technologies have more impact. All technologies of which the effectiveness could be investigated (MB12, flotation, supercritical CO2 and thermal treatment) are able to reduce the potential migration of mineral oils by >70%, but none score optimally on all indicators. The MB12 technology shows the best overall performance and is ready for implementation, provided its patent will be available to more parties. Supercritical CO2 performs best on food safety, but environmental and economic performance has to be improved. The developed assessment framework yields a clear overview of the advantages and disadvantages of the technologies. Based on the assessment, recommendations are made to stakeholders, including the recycling industry, the ink and printing industry, the food industry and research institutes. Mineral oil saturated and aromatic hydrocarbons (MOSH, MOAH) in food are a safety concern. Migration to food from recycled paper and board is a source of MOSH and MOAH. Reduction technologies (MB12, floatation, supercritical CO2, heat treatment, anionic trash catchers and functionalized clays) and the use of cleaner inks were assessed for food safety (people), sustainability (planet) and costs/implementability (profit). In the short term, reduction technologies have more impact. In the long term, it is desirable to apply cleaner inks.