This guide offers free technical assistance to the food industry on its journey toward less toxic and more sustainable food contact materials for use in food service ware, food packaging, and food processing equipment. We’ve included an initial list of food contact articles, materials, and chemical classes that will grow over time as additional information is compiled and shared.

The analysis herein is based on our decades of experience in profiling the hazards of chemical substances and materials (such as plastics) of concern, with a focus on practical solutions and safer alternatives. Our expertise has been informed by peer-reviewed science, technical reports, our own testing and investigations, and dialog with materials suppliers, packaging professionals, and food industry officials. See the Resources section for further guidance and authoritative sources.

The recommendations offered represent our best professional judgment. The list of suppliers of preferred articles is current as of the dates indicated. We encourage you to reach out directly to your suppliers for the most up-to-date information on preferred articles and their specifications. Although we lean into informing the North American market, we hope this information has greater relevance given the reach of global supply chains.

Please contact us if you have additional information to share, or wish to call any omissions or potential errors to our attention.

This project was funded by the Leon Lowenstein Foundation, with related support from other charitable foundations. We do not receive funding from any supplier or food company so we have no competing financial interest to disclose. None of the content on this site represents an endorsement of any specific product or brand.

This website is a project of Defend Our Health, a nonprofit environmental public health organization based in the United States. The web designer is Lauren Johnson.