Safety assessment of the process Starlinger viscotec viscoZERO PET used to recycle post‐consumer PET into food contact materials

Abstract The EFSA Panel on Food Contact Materials (FCM) assessed the safety of the recycling process Starlinger viscotec viscoZERO PET (EU register number RECYC340). The input is hot washed and dried poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) flakes mainly originating from collected post‐consumer PET containers, with no more than 5% PET from non‐food consumer applications. The flakes are melted in an extruder (step 1) and decontaminated in a reactor under high temperature and vacuum (step 2). In step 3, the melt is transferred out of the reactor and cooled down. Having examined the challenge test provided, the Panel concluded that the extrusion (step 1) and the treatment in the viscoZERO reactor (step 2) are critical for the decontamination efficiency of the process. The operating parameters to control the performance are the temperature for step 1, and for step 2, the pressure, the temperature as well as the decontamination index, interconnecting the rotation speed, the geometrical parameters and the throughput. It was demonstrated that this recycling process ensures that the level of migration of potential unknown contaminants into food is below the conservatively modelled migration of 0.0481 or 0.0962 μg/kg food, depending on the molar mass of a contaminant substance. Therefore, the Panel concluded that the recycled PET obtained from this process is not of safety concern, when used at up to 100% for the manufacture of materials and articles for contact with all types of foodstuffs, including drinking water, and used for long‐term storage at room temperature or below, with or without hot‐fill. Articles made of this recycled PET are not intended to be used in microwave and conventional ovens and such uses are not covered by this evaluation.