The Plastic Materials and Articles in Contact with Food (No 2) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006

PART 5 Migration Test Conditions (Times and Temperatures)

General criteria

1.  Subject to paragraphs 2, 4, 6 and 7 below and to paragraph 4.4 of Chapter II of the Annex to Directive 82/711, when carrying out migration tests the time and temperature used shall be the time and temperature selected from column 2 of the Table to this Part which correspond to the worst foreseeable conditions of contact specified in column 1 of that Table for the plastic material or article being tested and to any labelling information on maximum temperature for use.

2.  Where the plastic material or article being tested is intended for a food contact application covered by a combination of two or more times and temperatures specified in column 2 of the Table to this Part, the migration test shall be carried out by subjecting the test specimen successively to all the applicable worst foreseeable conditions appropriate to the sample, using the same portion of food simulant.

3.  For the purposes of this Part the worst foreseeable conditions of contact are those which are recognised to be the most severe on the basis of scientific evidence.

Volatile migrants

4.  When carrying out a test of the specific migration of volatile substances any test using a simulant shall be performed in a manner that recognises the loss of volatile migrants which may occur in the worst foreseeable conditions of use.

Special cases

5.  When carrying out a migration test of a plastic material or article that is intended for use in a microwave oven, if the appropriate time and temperature is selected from the table to this Part, either a conventional oven or a microwave oven may be used.

6.  Where the carrying out of a migration test under contact conditions specified in the Table to this Part causes any physical or other change in the test specimen that does not occur under the worst foreseeable conditions of use of the plastic material or article being tested, the migration test shall be carried out in the worst foreseeable conditions of use in which such physical or other change does not occur.

7.  Where, in actual use, the plastic material or article being tested is intended to be used for periods of less than 15 minutes at any temperature of not less than 70°C and not more than 100°C and such use is indicated by appropriate labelling or instructions, no test other than for 2 hours at 70°C shall be carried out on the plastic material or article unless the plastic material or article is also intended to be used for storage at room temperature, in which case no test other than for 10 days test at 40°C shall be carried out.

8.  The Table to this Part shall be read with the notes to it.

Conditions of contact in worst foreseeable use	Test conditions
(1) The period of time which represents the worst foreseeable conditions of contact.
(2) This temperature shall be used only for simulant D. For simulant A, B or C the test may be replaced by a test at 100oC or at reflux temperature for a duration of four times the time selected in accordance with paragraph 1 of this Part.
Contact time:	Test time:
less than or equal to 5 minutes	(1)
>5 minutes but less than or equal to 0.5 hours	0.5 hours
>0.5 hours but less than or equal to 1 hour	1 hour
>1 hour but less than or equal to 2 hours	2 hours
>2 hours but less than or equal to 4 hours	4 hours
>4 hours but less than or equal to 24 hours	24 hours
>24 hours	10 days
Contact temperature:	Test temperature:
less than or equal to 5°C	5°C
>5°C but less than or equal to 20°C >20°C but less than or equal to 40°C >40°C but less than or equal to 70°C >70°C but less than or equal to100°C >100°C but less than or equal to 121°C >121°C but less than or equal to 130°C >130°C but less than 150°C >150°C	20°C 40°C 70°C 100°C or reflux temperature 121°C (2) 130°C (2) 150°C (2) 175°C (2)