1. Outline
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) of Japan intends to
revise the current migration specifications for lead and cadmium in glass, ceramic, or
enameled equipment and containers for food use. The current specifications were
established in 1986, taking account of the following ISO, International Organization
for Standardization, standards; ISO6486 for ceramic ware, glass-ceramic ware and
glass dinnerware established in 1981 and ISO7086 for glass hollowware established in
1982.
Then in 1998, ISO4531 for vitreous and porcelain enameled ware was newly
established, followed by the revision of ISO6486 in 1999 and ISO7086 in 2000. The
draft revised migration specifications for lead and cadmium from glass, ceramic or
enameled equipments and containers were proposed in the report of the health,
labour and welfare science research conducted in the fiscal years 2004 and 2005,
based on the ISO specifications.