Products pulled after ingredient in plastic declared toxic

OTTAWA — Nalgene, the brand that popularized water bottles made from hard, clear and nearly unbreakable polycarbonate, will stop using the plastic because of growing concern over one of its ingredients.

The decision by Nalgene Outdoor Products, a unit of Thermo Fisher Scientific based in Rochester, N.Y., came after reports that the Canadian government would declare the chemical bisphenol-A, or BPA, toxic. Some animal studies have linked the chemical to changes in the hormonal system.

Those reports also prompted many of Canada's largest retailers, including Wal-Mart Canada, to remove food-related products made with plastics containing BPA, such as baby bottles, toddler sipping cups and food containers, from their stores this week.

Wal-Mart also will stop selling baby bottles made with the controversial chemical in its U.S. stores early next year, a spokesman said Thursday.

Wal-Mart has sold BPA-free baby bottles for several years alongside bottles with the chemical. But Thursday was the first time the retailer indicated it would convert its entire U.S. stock.

Spurred by customer demand, other retailers are also stocking products made without the chemical. A spokeswoman for Target said the chain began testing glass baby bottles in its stores in January and offering them online in February. Babies R Us said its sales of glass bottles have increased fivefold since last spring.

"Based on all available scientific evidence, we continue to believe that Nalgene products containing BPA are safe for their intended use," Steven Silverman, the general manager of the Nalgene unit, said in a statement. "However, our customers indicated they preferred BPA-free alternatives, and we acted in response to those concerns."

The United States' National Toxicology Program released a draft report Tuesday reporting that some rats that were fed or injected with low doses of BPA developed precancerous tumors and urinary-tract problems and reached puberty early. While the report said the animal tests provided "limited evidence," it also noted that the "possibility that bisphenol-A may alter human development cannot be dismissed."

On April 10, the American Chemistry Council, which says there is no evidence suggesting BPA has an adverse impact on people, asked the Food and Drug Administration to review the chemical.

Nalgene's decision to drop the plastic that transformed it from an obscure maker of laboratory equipment into a consumer brand does not mean the company is leaving the drinking-bottle business. It has long made bottles from other plastics that lack the glasslike transparency and rigidity that made polycarbonate popular.

In March, Nalgene also introduced a line of bottles made from a relatively new plastic from Eastman Chemical, Tritan copolyester, that shares most of polycarbonate's properties, including shatter resistance, but is made without BPA.

A person knowledgeable about Canada's chemical-review program said this week that the government had decided to list BPA as a toxic substance under the country's environmental protection act. Because of confidentiality rules, he spoke on the condition he not be identified.

Designation of the chemical will begin a two-year regulatory process that could lead to restrictions or a ban on the use of BPA.

Not all consumers are pleased by the actions. Because of Health Canada's review, London Drugs, based in Richmond, B.C., began withdrawing BPA-related merchandise Jan. 10 and replacing it with alternatives made of other plastics or stainless steel. Wynne Powell, the company's president, said the last 10 products were taken away this week.

"I had some complaints come to my desk complaining that we were fear-mongering by pulling products," Powell said. "The public was not totally on board."

A difficult question for retailers will be how to handle products, including soft drinks, that are packaged in aluminum or steel cans.

For the past two decades, the interiors of most cans have been coated with an epoxy resin that is made using BPA to extend the shelf life of the contents and prevent the metal from affecting the flavors of food and drinks.

John Rost, the chairman of the North American Metal Packaging Alliance, an industry group, said there was no evidence that the linings expose humans to significant amounts of BPA, a position not shared by all scientists.

Material from The Washington Post is included in this report.