Small polymeric toys placed in child-dedicated chocolate food products - do they contain harmful chemicals? Examination of quality by example of selected VOCs and SVOCs

Abstract

This study was focused on child-dedicated chocolate food products that contain a plastic package with a small toy inside (also known as chocolate eggs). Three types of these products that are commercially available on the Polish market, with different prices, chocolate composition, and main types of polymers used in the toy manufacturing process, were investigated. First, to fully characterise the studied polymer samples, the main types of material in the studied toys and their packaging were identified using Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) analysis. Next, the emissions of selected toxic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) of toy and packaging samples were identified using stationary emission micro-chamber. Total volatile organic compounds (TVOC) emissions were also estimated. Moreover, the content of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) as bioaccumulative semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) was checked in all parts of the cheapest product. The highest PBDE concentrations, which ranged from 5.32±0.79 to 1768±289 ng/g, were recorded in chocolate samples. This demonstrates the need for consumer knowledge on the safety of such products available on the Polish market to be broadened. This is one of the many examples of studies showing that products sold on the European market do not always comply with the CE declaration of conformity. Furthermore, the presence of phased-out PBDEs in toys may provide evidence of wrong recycling practices. Forward-looking considerations showed that, based on assessments of the hazard quotient (HQ) and cancer risk of BDE-209 (CRBDE-209) and assuming each child has contact with one toy and eats one of the studied chocolate products per day, there is no high risk associated with the exposure of children to PBDEs.