Some retailers removing BPA bottles

The Canadian Press

VANCOUVER — Two of Canada's major retailers said Tuesday they are pulling plastic water and baby bottles that contain the controversial chemical bisphenol A, in anticipation of a Health Canada labelling it a dangerous substance.

Forzani Group Ltd., Canada's largest sporting goods retailer, and Hudson's Bay Co., which includes the Bay and Zellers stores, said Tuesday they are removing BPA products and will refund money to customers who bought the bottles at their stores.

“Pending the government announcement, the company will immediately move to clear all 94 Bay stores and 280 Zellers stores of BPA baby products, and effective immediately, HBC will no longer sell any baby feeding products that are not BPA-free at any of its stores,” the company said in an e-mail to The Canadian Press.

Bob Sartor, chief executive officer of Forzani, which has more than 500 stores across Canada under such banners as Sport Check, Athlete's World and Coast Mountain Sports, said the company began removing the water bottles early Tuesday.

Last year, Mountain Equipment Co-op removed plastic bottles containing bisphenol A from its shelves, while Lululemon Athletica Inc. said all new water bottles arriving in its stores this year would be free of the controversial chemical.

A Globe and Mail report that Health Canada is expected to announce the finding against BPA on Wednesday was “sufficient cause to take the high road and get it off the shelf,” Mr. Sartor said.

“We are doing this out of an overabundance of caution.”

Forzani couldn't immediately say how much sales revenue the water bottles represent, but said it wasn't material.

“Even if it was, the bottom line is that if there are any significant concerns, we have to deal with it.”

If Health Canada marks BPA a dangerous substance it will be the first regulatory body in the world to do so, said Kapil Khatter, pollution policy adviser for Environmental Defence, a Toronto-based advocacy group that has lobbied for a ban on BPA in food and beverage containers.

“We have been saying for months there is enough evidence in animal studies that low doses of BPA are harmful,” Mr. Khatter said.

“I think it's the right thing to do. They are being responsible about protecting our health.”

Environmental Defence released a study this year showing some of the most popular plastic baby bottles sold across Canada have all turned up “very significant” levels of BPA.

In the study, nine different polycarbonate bottles from three different major manufacturers were heated during testing and leached levels of the chemical that ranged between five to eight parts per billion.

BPA acts like the hormone estrogen and can alter cell function. Chemical studies on animals have linked the product to cancer and infertility.

“The biggest concern is that we are exposing ourselves to these foreign estrogens,” said Stelvio Bandiera, a professor of Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of British Columbia.

While there have been no studies showing the impact of BPA in humans, Mr. Bandiera said that if animals are affected by the chemical “it is possible it could produce the same effects in humans.”

However, Steve Hentges, executive director of the polycarbonate-BPA global group at the American Chemistry Council, argues there is a “huge body of evidence” that shows the chemical is not harmful.

“[These studies] support the conclusion there is no risk to human health, particularly at extremely low levels.”

Health Minister Tony Clement wouldn't confirm or deny Tuesday that Health Canada is poised to label BPA as a dangerous substance.

“I'm not here to speculate and certainly when we have something that has been determined, we'll immediately get that out to the public,” Mr. Clement said.

“Our primary responsibility is the health and safety of Canadians. I believe we have to err on the side of caution, and I believe we have to let science dictate what our determinations must be.”