"Can damnation!" decries the fool

Jester image by Wälz from Pixabay moronically drinking from a can from png.tree while ironically perched atop a perfectly good water source. Bad image editing by The Garbage Lady.

I routinely shun beverages in single-use plastic bottles, but I've had no qualms with those in cans. After all, aluminum is infinitely recyclable. I happily sipped sparkling water that tested free from forever chemicals, and I diligently checked for "BPA-free" labeling on all of my canned and tinned pantry staples. Ever the fool am I, thinking that by carefully choosing these aluminum and steel cans, I was avoiding plastic packaging and its inherent toxins. I never thought to consider, "henceforth what, if not BPA?" Ay, there's the rub, for a rose by any other name would still smell like plastic, and BPA (bisphenol A) is only one of many characters in this tragedy.

To set the stage, metal cans are prone to corrosion and can cause their contents to become discolored or take on a metallic taste, hence the need for a protective lining. Before plastic linings, cans were coated in a thin layer of tinplate followed by a plant-derived oleoresin. Because the oleoresin required long curing times (10-15 minutes), that practice fell from favor when impatient, high-speed can manufacturing took hold. Around the 1950s, boosted by a boom in plastic production, the preferred material became an epoxy resin that contained BPA, even though BPA had been known to be toxic since the 1930s. It wasn't until 2009 that states started banning BPA, and a damning timeline shows how both the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) failed to take action for decades, despite evidence that BPA leaches into foods and even very small levels of exposure affect neurological, cardiovascular, reproductive, endocrine, and other biological systems.

Presently, BPA has been phased out of ~95% of consumer canned goods, and though most linings may be BPA-free, nearly all continue to be made from plastic resins. The FDA doesn’t require manufacturers to disclose any details about these alternative linings, and none are free from risk:

• Non-BPA epoxies often contain BPA derivatives such as BPS, BPF, BPAF, BPZ, BPP, BHPF. There are over a hundred of these derivatives, which share the same basic chemical structure of a bisphenol, and they are largely untested and unregulated. BPS, a known hormone disruptor, is widely used to coat receipt paper.

• Acrylic resins pose environmental risks since they don't fully biodegrade and the manufacturing process creates highly toxic fumes. Though free from BPA, acrylic contains the bisphenols BPS or BSF. One study found that 39% of acrylic linings included polystyrene, which is derived from styrene, a suspected carcinogen and endocrine disruptor.

• PVC is considered the most toxic plastic for human health and the environment. It's created from vinyl chloride, a known carcinogen and endocrine disruptor. One study found PVC-based resin in 25% of cans.

• Polyesters, though considered safer for human health than other alternatives, are toxic to aquatic life and can persist in the environment for years.

• Phthalates are commonly added to plastics to make them more flexible and durable. Similar to BPA, these chemicals leach into foods and disrupt the endocrine system even at very small levels of exposure.

After learning these truths, I've put an end to my sparkling water habit and switched to tap water and tea, though I steer clear of plastic teabags. I've also switched from canned beans to dried. They're much cheaper, incredibly easy to prepare, and if I make a big batch I can freeze what I don't use for a later day when I want a spontaneous bean moment. I'll figure out tomatoes someday, but for now I'll focus on fresh.

Watch as this 90-second video from Home Science reveals that aluminum cans are sources of single-use plastic.

Sources

• BPA update: Tracking the canned food phaseout — Environmental Working Group (Nov 2020)

• Why BPA-free may not mean a plastic product is safe — National Geographic (Sep 2018)

• If a product says BPA-free, does that mean it's safe? — Center for Environmental Health (Apr 2018)

• Timeline: BPA from invention to phase-out — Environmental Working Group (Apr 2008)

• The worst of the worst: High-priority plastic materials, chemical additives, and products to phase out — NRDC (Oct 2023)

• Can coatings for foods and beverages: issues and options — Inderscience Online (Dec 2012)

• The plastic chemicals hiding in your food — Consumer Reports (Jan 2024)