Founding Partner Jerome Heckman Quoted in FDA Week Article on BPA

Keller and Heckman founding partner, Jerome H. Heckman, was quoted in a January 22, 2010 FDA Week article, titled, "FDA Seeking Bolstered Regulatory Authority for BPA." The article pointed out that current bisphenol A (BPA) food contact uses were cleared through food additive regulations before the food contact notification (FCN) process was implemented in 2000.

FDA Week stated in the article that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) "is weighing it legal authority to regulate the chemical bisphenol A through its notification process for food contact substances, which would give the agency more flexibility in overseeing and restricting the chemical's use." The article also reported on a media briefing that FDA held on January 15, 2010, where FDA Principal Deputy Commissioner Joshau Sharfstein said that the agency intends to determine in the near future whether it can shift the way it regulates BPA administratively or if it requires legislative authority.

In response to FDA's announcement that it is looking for ways to increase oversight of BPA, Mr. Heckman told FDA Week, "If FDA decides to regulate BPA in a special way, it would upset the whole regulatory apple cart." Mr. Heckman also disagreed that there was a need for further research on BPA, suggesting that FDA was simply bowing to pressure from consumer groups. (For a history of the FCN program, see Mr. Heckman's article, Fathoming Food Packaging Regulations Revisited, on PackagingLaw.com.)