Bisphenol A (BPA) has been used since the 1950s to make epoxy resin linings for metal food cans — a thin coating that prevents corrosion and preserves food quality. These linings migrate BPA directly into canned food, and the exposure from a single can of tomatoes, soup, or tuna can deliver a BPA dose that exceeds the EFSA revised tolerable daily intake by orders of magnitude. Despite increasing consumer and regulatory pressure, BPA-lined cans remain the global default for tinned food, and replacements frequently introduce other bisphenols with similar or poorly characterised toxicological profiles.
Where it's found
Tinned tomatoes, tomato puree, and passata — the acidic nature of tomatoes is particularly effective at leaching BPA from can linings, making this one of the highest BPA food migration sources. Tinned soups, stews, and ready meals. Tinned fish (tuna, sardines, salmon, mackerel). Tinned vegetables and pulses (beans, chickpeas, lentils). Tinned fruit and fruit juices in cans. Tinned baby food — a particular concern given the vulnerability of infants and the direct consumption of can contents. Tinned pet food shares the same BPA lining issue. Acidic, fatty, and hot-packed foods produce the highest migration levels. Heating canned food in the can dramatically increases BPA migration.
Routes of exposure
Dietary ingestion from consuming food that has been in contact with BPA-lined can coatings is the primary route — BPA migrates from the epoxy lining into food during canning, storage, and particularly during heating. Longer storage time and higher storage temperature increase migration. Heating canned food in the can (e.g. canned soup heated in the tin on a hob) is a worst-case exposure scenario. Consuming canned tomato products, which are both acidic and stored for extended periods, delivers some of the highest BPA exposures available in the typical diet.
Health concerns
BPA from canned food is among the highest-studied dietary exposure routes for BPA. EFSA dramatically revised its TDI for BPA from 4 µg/kg body weight/day to 0.2 ng/kg body weight/day in 2023 — a 20,000-fold reduction reflecting evidence across thyroid, cardiovascular, immune, and reproductive endpoints. Multiple studies measuring BPA in urine before and after consuming canned food document significant increases — dietary canned food consumption is one of the most consistent predictors of BPA body burden in biomonitoring surveys. Acidic foods in BPA-lined cans deliver particularly high doses.
Evidence
BPA migration from epoxy can linings into food is analytically confirmed across hundreds of studies. Dietary BPA from canned food is one of the best-characterised exposure routes — controlled feeding studies clearly show increases in urinary BPA following canned food consumption. EFSA 2023 re-evaluation represents the most comprehensive safety assessment and concluded the margin of exposure was insufficiently reassuring at current dietary exposures, with particular concern for reproductive and immune endpoints.
Who's most at risk
Infants consuming canned baby food, formula from cans, or food prepared in cans receive high BPA doses relative to body weight during critical developmental windows. Pregnant women, as BPA crosses the placenta. Individuals who eat canned food as a dietary staple — particularly canned tomato products and soups — rather than fresh or frozen alternatives.
Regulatory status
RegulationBPA is banned from polycarbonate baby bottles (EU since 2011) and from food contact materials for infants and young children in the EU. BPA in food contact materials generally is regulated under EU Regulation (EU) 2018/213, which set a specific migration limit of 0.05 mg/kg food. Following the 2023 EFSA opinion, the European Commission initiated a review of this limit, as it may be set too high to protect against newly identified health endpoints. UK retained existing BPA food contact limits post-Brexit.
How to reduce your exposure
Choose fresh, frozen, or glass-jarred alternatives to tinned food wherever practical — tinned tomatoes, pulses, and soups are easily substituted. Rinse canned pulses (chickpeas, lentils, beans) under water after opening, which removes some surface BPA along with salt. Do not heat canned food in the can. Look for tins labelled BPA-free — these are becoming more available but may contain BPS replacements; glass jars are the safest packaging choice. Dried pulses cooked from scratch avoid the can lining issue entirely and are cost-effective.
The nutrition connection
Canned food is a nutritional convenience with a significant packaging caveat — and the canned tomato is perhaps the most nutritionally confusing product in the supermarket: rich in lycopene and antioxidants, yet delivering BPA to an extent that a single serving can significantly increase daily BPA body burden. The practical Nutriofia conclusion is straightforward: canned tomatoes and tomato products in glass jars or tetrapak cartons are the direct substitution that preserves the nutritional benefit while eliminating the BPA exposure. Extending this logic across the weekly shopping — choosing glass over tin as a default packaging preference — is one of the simplest and most comprehensively effective BPA reduction strategies available.