Safety assessment of the process AMB, based on bandera technology, used to recycle post-consumer PET into food contact materials

The EFSA Panel on Food Contact Materials, Enzymes and Processing Aids (CEP) evaluated the safety of the recycling process AMB (EU register number RECYC154). The input is washed and dried poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) flakes originating from collected post-consumer PET containers with no more than 5% PET from non-food applications. It is decontaminated in a reactor at high temperature under vacuum and extruded to sheets. Having examined the challenge test provided, the Panel concluded that two steps, the decontamination in the vacuum reactor (step 2) and the extrusion (step 3), are critical in determining the decontamination efficiency of the process. The operating parameters to control the performance of these critical steps are temperature, residence time and pressure for step 2 and temperature, residence time, pressure and screw speed for step 3. It was demonstrated that this recycling process is able to ensure that the level of migration of potential unknown contaminants into food is below the conservatively modelled migration of 0.1 μg/kg food. Therefore, the Panel concluded that the recycled PET obtained from this process when used up to 100% for the manufacture of materials and articles for contact with all types of foodstuffs for long-term storage at room temperature, with or without hotfill, is not considered of safety concern. Articles made of this recycled PET are not intended to be used in microwave and conventional ovens and such use is not covered by this evaluation.