Specific migration of mineral oil hydrocarbons (MOSH/POSH and MOAH)

Specific migration of mineral oil hydrocarbons (MOH), including mineral oil saturated hydrocarbons (MOSH) with polyolefin oligomeric hydrocarbons (POSH) and mineral oil aromatic hydrocarbons (MOAH) from food contact materials (FCM) into a food simulant.

Analysis is possible with food simulants 10%, 20%, 50%, and 95% ethanol, 3% acetic acid, iso-octane, olive oil, and Tenax. The price includes testing with one simulant.

The results are reported as the concentrations of fractions of MOSH/POSH and MOAH, with grouping based on the number of carbon atoms in the substances. The reported fractions are listed in the table below:

POSH are not part of MOH but can be present in polyolefin plastics, such as polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP). MOSH and POSH have very similar structures and they tend to elute together in chromatography. Thus in polyolefin plastics and materials with polyolefin layers, it is usually impossible to separate MOSH and POSH with normal analysis techniques.

The analysis includes a compliance assessment according to the following references:

MOSH fraction: in-house risk assessment

POSH fraction: Plastics Europe documentation Polyolefin oligomers: research project for risk assessment.

MOAH fraction: Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed Section Novel Food and Toxicological Safety of the Food Chain 19 October 2022