Japan | Draft "Positive List" System

The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) published a draft “Positive List (PL)” System for food utensils, containers, and packaging (UCP) made of synthetic resin on August 9, 2019 as stipulated by "Item 9 of A. General Specifications for Apparatus, Containers and Packaging, and their Materials of Chapter III: Apparatus, Containers and Packaging in the he Specifications and Standards for Foods, Food Additives, Etc." (MHLW Notification No. 370, 1959).

The MHLW first announced its intentions to incorporate a positive list system for regulating food contact materials in July 2015. After two years of consultation, the first formal report, “Report by the Committee on the Regulation of Food Utensils, Containers and Packaging” was issued on June 16, 2017. On June 13, 2018, the MHLW introduced the positive list system for the first time in the revised Food Sanitation Act (Act No. 46).

[Source: Overview of amendments to the Food Sanitation Act]

The draft PL consists of the following proposed materials permitted for use in UCP, taking into consideration of international consistency. UCP made of raw materials not stipulated in the Positive List will be prohibited for sale.

Under the provisions of Article 18 (3), the raw materials for synthetic resins shall be those listed in the Appended Table 1

Appended Table 1

Table 1 Base polymers

(1) Base polymers (Plastics)

Japanese English

Substances used for colouring shall be the designated colorants or the colorants processed so that they will not be eluted or seeped out into food.

Base polymers listed in Table 1 (2) of the Appended Table 1 shall be produced by polymerizing or cross-linking prepolymers on appropriate base materials.

(2) Base polymers (Coatings etc.)

More than 98 wt% of the components of a base polymer shall be constituted with the polymers in Table 1 (1) or (2) of the Appended Table 1, and the remaining components shall be the copolymers of monomers listed in Table 1 (3) of in the Appended Table 1.

(3) Minor monomers can be used for polymerization of base polymers

（Additives, coating agents, etc.: the draft of the PL for Table 2 of the Appended Table 1)

An overview of the amendments to the Food Sanitation Act can be found here.

Public comments can be submitted via the form available on the government website:

○制度に関する御意見　Comments on the Positive List system

　　　・意見提出様式［xlsx形式：9KB］　The form

Contact address: packpl@mhlw.go.jp

Please e-mail with the subject “Comments on the Japanese Positive List system for UCP” in the title.

Food Safety Standards and Evaluation Division,

Pharmaceutical Safety and Environmental Health Bureau, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare

1-2-2, Chiyoda-ku, Kasumigaseki, Tokyo, 100-8916

Completed forms should be sent by 30 September, 2019. Once reviewed, the final positive list is expected to be promulgated approximately in December 2019 and enter into force in June 2020.

Related Articles:

G/SPS/N/JPN/681-Revision of the Standards and Specifications for Foods and Food Additives under the Food Sanitation Act - Draft Positive List

The summary of the amendment to the Specifications and Standards for Foods, Food Additives, Etc. (Ministry of Health and Welfare Notification No. 370, 1959)