Thailand makes the industrial standard on Paper for Food Contact mandatory 
Thai Industrial Standards Institute (TISI), Ministry of Industry notified “Draft Ministerial Regulation on Paper for food contact (TIS 2948-2562(2019))” to the WTO on 31 March 2021 by G/TBT/N/THA/604. The draft ministerial regulation mandates paper for food contact to conform with the standard for Paper for food contact (TIS 2948-2562(2019)) for the purpose of consumer protection. The final date for comments is set for 11 May 2021. The regulation will be effective 360 days after the announcement in the Royal Gazette.
About TIS 2948-2562(2019)
Scope:
The standard specifies safety requirements for the paper, board, and paper containers without color composition in paper texture for general and hot-fills of foods both direct and indirect contact with foods that has the opportunity of chemical migration into the food. The standard does not cover paper, board, and paper containers for hot liquid filtration and reheating or cooking foods purposes.
Type of paper for food contact
Paper for food contact is classified into 2 types based on the raw material;
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- Virgin pulp type, and
- Recycled pulp type.
In addition, paper for food contact is classified into 2 types based on the application;
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- Sheet paper for processing, and
- Container type (molded / sheet-processed).
Requirements for materials
In the case of virgin pulp type, it must be 100% of virgin pulp. In the case of recycled pulp type, it must not be made from or contain paper originated from contamination sources, including wastes, used sanitary paper, and carbon paper. Chemicals used in the production process, printing ink, and adhesive materials must be food contact grade.
Standard of chemical concentration in paper for food contact
Chemical concentration in paper for food contact both in virgin pulp and recycled pulp type shall meet the standard maximum limits in the table below.
| No. | Chemical Substances | Standard | Test method |
| 1 | Lead | Not exceed 3 mg/kg | EN 12498 |
| 2 | Cadmium | Not exceed 0.5 mg/kg | EN 12498 |
| 3 | Mercury | Not exceed 0.3 mg/kg | EN 12497 |
| 4 | Optical Brightening Agent* (OBA) | ND | EN 648 |
| 5 | Antimicrobial Constituent | No antimicrobial constituent transfer | EN 1104 |
| 6 | Azo Dye | ND | ISO 14362-1 |
| 7 | Phthalate
|
|
EN 16453 |
| 8 | Bisphenol A | Not exceed 0.24 mg/kg | CEN/TS 13130-13 |
| 9 | 4,4’-bis(dimethylamino)benzophenone | ND | Extract sample with an ethanol solution, analyze with HPLC, and measured absorbance by UV detector |
| 10 | Benzophenone | Not exceed 0.6 mg/kg | Extract sample with an ethanol solution, dry under N2 at 25ºC, dissolve in ethanol, and then analyze by GC-MS |
More information is available at
https://members.wto.org/crnattachments/2021/TBT/THA/21_2409_00_x.pdf
