There must be sufficient scientific information to demonstrate that the use of a substance in food contact materials is safe under the intended conditions of use before it is authorized for those uses. It’s surprisingly easy to get high doses of phthalates from food, especially in the US.

Phthalates are definitely a cause for concern, especially for infants and expecting females, but threshold doses aren’t known.

Lab tests revealed that toxic industrial chemicals, called phthalates, are found in 10 varieties of macaroni and cheese, including eight out of nine Kraft products. Boxed mac and cheese is high in phthalates because of plastic involved in processing, plus fat content. This includes the use of some phthalates in food packaging. Boxed mac and cheese often means survival for tots and poor college students, but new research shows there may be harmful chemicals in the powdered cheese. If you end up eating the whole box at one time, you're downing 1,250 milligrams of sodium and 130 grams of carbs. The FDA regulates all substances in food contact materials that are reasonably expected to migrate into food based on their intended use. You'll find the Market Pantry at Target and while at first glance this mac and cheese seems not so bad, you want to keep in mind this whole box is a dinner size, meaning it has two and a half servings. The substances in food contact materials may migrate at low levels when the materials come into contact with food. I reached out to the FDA for comment, but the response from press officer Megan McSeveney didn’t directly address boxed mac and cheese. But because exposures are so frequent and common, some level or body burden of the phthalate family of chemicals can regularly be detected. Unlike some chemicals, like dioxin, lead, or mercury, that tend to persist and build up in various tissues, phthalates are generally not persistent, though under some circumstances, phthalates do tend to accumulate in certain organs.

Is boxed mac and cheese bad for you