I’m on the warpath.
Ever since I learned about the dangers of BPA, I pick up plastic items I see in shops and have a look at the recycle number on the bottom. If it’s a 7, it’s more likely to have BPA.
Today I saw this awesome new reusable cup at Starbucks.
It looks just like the disposable summer cups, but this one is reusable. Excellent, right? Wrong.
Ignore the fact the exchange is out of whack and it’s $14 in Canada and only $11 in the US. Flip it over and you’ll see a lovely #7 on the bottom. That means it is likely to contain BPA. Despite the fact that retailers across Canada, and the US, have rallied to remove products made with BPA from their shelves, Starbucks still serves up a Venti load of them on shelves across the country.
Same with VANOC. The Vancouver Olympic Committee oversees the release of souvenirs and confirms use of the official Olympic symbols. Canadian Tire has some water bottles with the official Vancouver Olympic logo on the side, heck they’ve got them on the official Olympic website too, and … a number 7 on the bottom. That means, the Vancouver Olympic Committee is endorsing products that are, most likely, in defiance of the Federal Government’s recent declaration that BPA is a toxic substance.
Shame. Shame. Shame.
The Blog According to Buzz. Spread the word, ya heard?
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You go Buzz!
You have to be careful though Buzz….Not ALL 7 recycleables contain BPA - this has been overlooked during all the hype about getting rid of BPA - even I missed it!!! For example - I was in LuluLemon a week ago, and was looking at one of their bottles and flipped it over and low and behold, it was a 7. I turned to the clerk and said, I thought you guys got rid of all of your BPA bottles??? And she said, We did…none of our bottles have BPA. I waggled the bottle bottom at her and said this is a 7…she said yes, but it’s BPA free - it’s just made from other kinds of plastics that fall into the 7 category but it is BPA-free.
Being the skeptic that I am, I went and looked it up…
From: http://www.nalgene-outdoor.com/technical/bpaInfo.html
Most plastic containers are marked (usually on the bottom) with a number within a triangle with arrows commonly known as a recycling symbol. These numbers, known as the resin identification coding system, were created in 1988 to facilitate recycling programs across the country. These recycling numbers can range from #1 to #7, depending on the type of plastic. The #7 recycling label is a catchall indicator for plastics made with a resin other than those in the #1 to #6 designations, or made of more than one resin. The #7 category not only includes polycarbonate, but also includes compostable plastics made of organic material and other types of plastic that do not necessarily contain BPA (Bisphenol-A).
So, just b/c it’s a 7 doesn’t mean it’s gonna kill you
It may be worth an email to Starbucks
P.S. Your daily green link even says:
A wide variety of plastic resins that don’t fit into the previous categories are lumped into number 7. A few are even made from plants (polyactide) and are compostable. Polycarbonate is number 7, and is the hard plastic that has parents worried these days, after studies have shown it can leach potential hormone disruptors.
Thanks for the clarification, Kat. I’ve updated some of the text above to reflect your information.
However, the 7 is the only guideline we, as consumers, have that a product “may” contain BPA.
That’s still too much of a risk.
7 means “other” and until it’s a little more clear than that, I will treat them all as potentially toxic. In this situation it’s GUILTY until proven otherwise - it’s the only way to stay safe.
Coolio Buzz. I am totally with you - better to be safe than sorry. I emailed Lulu to find out from them about their bottles as well (forgot that in the last post)…waiting to hear back from them.
Ideally, we should all push to get “7″s split out into 7, 8, 9, 10, etc. to accurately reflect their recyclability (since some of them actually are) and to reflect specifically BPA containing resins so they are uniquely and easily identifiable so we don’t have to guess about our health….now THAT would be great!!!
Has anyone heard anything about the Ethos brand reusable Starbucks bottles? I love mine, but I am entirely prepared to trash it just like the Nalgene bottles. I’ve emailed Starbucks and I’m waiting on a reply (that will probably never come…). I always drink out of the hard plastic bottles, so the BPA scare really bothers me.
[...] The bottles are more difficult to find on shelves, however places like Starbucks still carry BPA products. [...]