Phthalate Leachates in Selected Plastic Packed Food Products - A GC-MS Study

Phthalates, an alkyl aryl esters of 1, 2 benzenedicarboxylic acids are widely used as plasticizer. They show low water solubility, high oil solubility, high octanol-to-water partition coefficient and low volatility. Phthalates are easily released into the packed food because there is no covalent bond between the phthalates and plastics in which they are mixed. Phthalates may cause major ill effects like endocrine disruption, asthma and cancer. A study was conducted on tea (aromatic beverage), sambar (an Indian dish) and alcohol packed in polythene covers and plastic cups used in routine hotels and beverage shops. The samples were analyzed for plastic residues through gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The result shows that, the tea filled in polythene cover and alcohol filled in plastic cup did not show any leachate of phthalates. However, the sambar packed in the polythene cover showed leachate of phthalates. The diethylhexyl phthalate was observed to be 20% of Total Ion Chromatogram in sambar. Future studies can be carried out to identify the leaching effect of phthalates in different plastic packed food materials under different conditions.