Japan to Implement New Policy on Food Contact Materials

On November 30, 2023, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) of Japan issued Notification No. 324, officially announcing the Positive List (PL) for food utensils, containers, and packaging from June 1, 2025. Additionally, partial modifications have been made, including elimination, consolidation of substance names, and changes in restrictions, as a result of updating the PL management scope for synthetic resins. These modifications will also come into force on June 1, 2025.

Formal Positive List

• Appended Table 1: Table 1 Base Material

It covers to polymers in synthetic resins with a molecular weight of 1,000 or more, and in solid form at normal temperature and pressure. Furthermore, the applicable food categories, usage temperatures, and special notes are deleted.

• Appended Table 1: Table 2 Additives

This Table establishes provisions for organic low-molecular-weight substances that generally have a molecular weight below 1,000 and are intended to alter the physical or chemical properties of the substrate without any chemical reactions in the manufacturing process or residue in the final product.

However, substances with a molecular weight of 1,000 or more, and in liquid form at normal temperature and pressure or having specific functional groups that exhibit unique effects on the substrate, are included in Table 2 as additives.

Notably, the terms "alcoholic beverages," "acidic foods," "oils and fatty foods," and "foods containing oils and fatty foods" in Table 2 shall be defined as follows:

1. Alcoholic beverages refer to beverages with an alcohol concentration of 1% or higher by volume.

2. Acidic foods refer to foods with a pH of 4.6 or below in the food or on the food surface.

3. Oils and fatty foods refer to foods with an oil content of 20% or higher in the food or on the food surface.

4. Foods containing oils and fatty foods refer to foods that [themselves] fall into the category of oils and fatty foods and include one or more types of such foods.

Implementation rules

These changes will take effect from June 1, 2025. However, for food utensils, containers, and packaging that are currently sold, manufactured, imported, or used and are of the same type* with those had been sold, manufactured, imported, or used for business purposes prior to the amendment enforcement date in June 1, 2020, the synthetic resin used in which as the raw material can be considered as listed in Appended Table 1.

*Same type refers to the synthetic resin raw materials used in the production of food utensils, containers, and packaging that had been sold, manufactured, imported, or used for business purposes before the amendment enforcement date in June 1, 2020 within the scope of their previous usage, which were subsequently used in Japanese domestically manufactured or imported food utensils, containers, and packaging.

Specifically, utensils, containers, packaging, or similar items that were sold, manufactured, imported, or used before June 1, 2020, and contain the materials and substances specified in Article 1 of the Enforcement Regulations of the Food Sanitation Act can also be considered as included in the revised PL. 

Therefore, if additives are used in substrates that have not been used before or if the quantity of additives used is increased beyond previous usage, they are not fall under the scope of transitional measure (June 1, 2020 to May 31, 2025). Enterprises need to provide explanations based on manufacturing records, import records, etc., to prove that they fall within the scope of previous usage.

Currently, MHLW has newly established a new dedicated webpage for the Positive List System, effective from June 1, 2025. Additionally, until May 31, 2025, the original dedicated webpage is still accessible for obtaining relevant information.

• Positive List System after June 1, 2025

• Positive List System until May 31, 2025