A food contact material is any material or article intended to come into contact with food, including packaging, liners, containers and processing surfaces, and must not transfer substances to food in quantities that endanger health or alter composition unacceptably.
In trade practice
EU requirements under Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004 apply to all food contact materials, with specific measures such as Regulation (EU) No 10/2011 covering plastic materials. Suppliers are expected to provide a declaration of compliance confirming that materials meet applicable limits, and buyers should request this document alongside the certificate of analysis for each batch. A frequent gap is packaging sourced from non-EU manufacturers that lacks a declaration of compliance, which can delay customs clearance or trigger rejection at intake. QA teams auditing frozen fruit or vegetable suppliers should verify that inner liners, cartons and pallet wraps are all covered.
In a specification
A procurement specification should require a declaration of compliance referencing the applicable regulation for each material type, confirming that no prohibited substances migrate into the product.